Screw you Neil Young and all the other celebrities who want to infringe on my rights and free speech.
Posted on 01/28/2022 6:22:04 PM PST by nickcarraway
Musicians have taken sides in the ongoing discourse surrounding Neil Young’s battle with Spotify.
Young made headlines on Jan. 24 when he demanded his music be pulled from Spotify due to the streaming site’s support for The Joe Rogan Experience, a popular podcast which has been scrutinized for promoting lies about COVID-19 vaccines.
“I am doing this because Spotify is spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them,” the rocker wrote at the time. “I want all my music off their platform. They can have [Joe] Rogan or Young. Not both.”
Spotify respected Young’s ultimatum and opted to pull the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s catalog from their platform. Doing so has resulted in a new round of criticism, as musicians and fans alike have slammed the streaming giant for seemingly backing Rogan’s side in the debate.
In a show of support, Nils Lofgren also had his music removed from Spotify. “We will miss the $3.28 we get a year but we will forge ahead righteously,” the rocker’s wife remarked via Twitter.
Young’s former CSNY bandmate David Crosby said the musician’s action “makes me proud of him,” while Kay Hanley of '90s alt-rock group Letters to Cleo wrote: “If record labels + fans found out in the 90s that Tower Records was ripping off artists, using music profits to bankroll and elevate Rush Limbaugh, the shelves would have been empty. I hope more powerful artists follow Neil Young’s stance on toxic jock Joe Rogan #LeaveSpotify.”
Catherine Mayer, widow of Gang of Four’s Andy Gill who died in the pandemic’s early days, wrote an open letter to Spotify condemning the streaming company’s decision. “If my beloved husband, Andy Gill, hadn’t died at the start of the pandemic, he’d have strong and clear feelings about your decision to remove Neil Young’s music in favor of a podcast that has spread anti-vax misinformation,” she wrote in part. “If vaccines had been available at the start of the pandemic, he’d be here to have that conversation with you. Instead, I must speak for him. And I have to tell you, as his widow, I feel sick about the business decision you’ve made.”
Meanwhile, Sebastian Bach called on his fellow musicians to voice support for Young. “Imagine calling yourself a rocker yet siding with some dude who has a podcast over Neil Young,” the former Skid Row frontman declared. “You can stick to listening to your podcast and I will stick to listening to Neil Young.”
Still, not every musician was in Young’s corner. David Draiman, frontman of the metal band Disturbed, voiced support for Spotify’s decision. “[Spotify CEO Daniel Ek] I applaud you and Spotify for making the RIGHT call, preserving #FreeSpeech and not capitulating to the mob,” the singer declared. “I may not agree with everything Joe Rogan or his guests say, but they’re entitled to have the forum to say it.”
In a statement to Billboard, Spotify said: “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. 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. We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon.”
The aforementioned tweets and more can be found below.
Who cares?
Joe Rogan toxic? Reminds me of what people who never listened to Rush would say about him.
Libs will do anything to get their way, yet they ignore a million people opposing their tyranny in Canada, but write multiple stories about this egghead bullsh*t.
<< In a show of support, Nils Lofgren also had his music removed from Spotify. “We will miss the $3.28 we get a year but we will forge ahead righteously,” the rocker’s wife remarked >>
Self-righteously, she means.
Nils Lofgren? I haven’t heard that name since the Reagan Administration. Neil Young continues his tantrum, hitting the edge of his high chair with his little decorative spoon.
Neil Young is an arrogant prick who thinks that he is a lot more important than he really is. He really sucks as a musician and human being. Most people can care less about him or his opinions.
The HO train man got just what he wanted.
Barry Manilow cashed in on the song, “I Write the Songs”, which he didnt write........shameful!
Who the hell are these people? Young and Crosby are has been’s and the others are never was.
Barry Manilow wasn’t actually demanding his songs be taken off Spotify. Neither was Bruce Johnston.
Many of the most famous musicians during the 60’s and 70’s have turned into some of the biggest conformists and bleating sheep you ever saw.
Communist scum always coagulates quickly...
Who’s Neil Young?
Except for people at the fringes most people don’t care what these people think.
I’ve played in dance/cover bands all of my adult life. I regularly would do something of neils - just so I could mock his super-whiney voice.
“promoting lies about COVID-19 vaccines”
So we are to believe that Colin Powell was saved by the vaccine? That there are no Covid-19 cases in Israel because they are vexed and boosted? Nobody can even ask these and other questions?
Would anyone not being say, an accountant, a physical therapist, etc. suddenly say anyone in said fields of expertise are not allowed a disagreement? Does a journalist have a say in debates about accountancy or the merits of a particular therapy, just based on their anointed “authorities”? Seriously?
Are we never to question what anyone has to say just because they have a doctorate? Ok, so do I, and I question this entire narrative.
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