Joni Mitchell has revealed that she is pulling her music from Spotify to show solidarity with Neil Young.
On Friday, January 28, the Canadian singer-songwriter made the announcement after Neil Young performed a similar move in a stand against the spread of misinformation about the coronavirus vaccine.
Joe Rogan has recently come under fire for spreading such misinformation via his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, and subsequently Spotify agreed to remove Young's music after he stated that he did not want to share the platform with the host.
78-year-old Mitchell has now decided to do the same.
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Taking to her website in a statement titled, 'I Stand With Neil Young', the fellow performer explained she has decided to 'remove all [her] music from Spotify,' because of 'irresponsible people [...] spreading lies that are costing people their lives.'
'I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue,' she concluded.
In a open letter to his management and record label, which has since been deleted, Young claimed the platform was 'spreading fake information about vaccines - potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them,' Rolling Stone reports.
Young added: 'I want you to let Spotify know immediately TODAY that I want all my music off their platform. They can have Rogan or Young. Not both.'
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The star noted the 'tremendous influence' that Rogan's podcast has 'with an estimated 11 million listeners per episode' and stated that the platform - to which the podcast is exclusive and was number one globally in 2021 - has 'a responsibility to mitigate the spread of misinformation on its platform, though the company presently has no misinformation policy.'
Rogan has defended the podcast by expressing that listeners should not see him as someone to go to for medical advice. The host also clarified that he isn't 'an anti-vax person'.
In response to the letter, Spotify agreed to remove Young's music, but also stated it hoped to 'welcome him back soon'.
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'We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users,' the streaming service said. 'With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom for creators. We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic,' it explained.
In an updated letter posted yesterday, January 28, Young noted how he 'felt better' for having left the platform, NBC reports.
He concluded, 'Private companies have the right to choose what they profit from, just as I can choose not to have my music support a platform that disseminates harmful information. I am happy and proud to stand in solidarity with the front line health care workers who risk their lives every day to help others.'
If you’ve been affected by coronavirus and want up to date advice, visit the Gov.uk help page here. If you need medical help call NHS 111 or visit online
Topics: Spotify, Coronavirus
Poppy Bilderbeck