A Thought on Small or Unknown Artists Leaving Spotify
This is an expansion of a reel I posted.
Lately I have been seeing more and more small and unknown artists proudly posting about removing their music from Spotify–something I myself have considered in the recent past. But the more I see this, and the more my numbers on Spotify increase, the more I wonder if these artists are doing it as a strategy, or as a virtue signal.
Of course, as publicly stated, I do not wish my music to generate money for war, violence or malice of any kind. That should be a given, given my entire platform is built on uplifting all of humanity, which includes all sides of any political or social embattlement. But I do wish for my music to be both heard by current fans and discovered by potential, new fans. Spotify is, by far, the number one platform for both listening and discovery. So, knowing that the mass public is on Spotify, I pose the question: if you are an emerging artist that wants to grow their fanbase; why would you want to leave this platform? Do you think you are gaining more in self- or public-image by removing your music than you gain from staying on Spotify and expanding or nurturing your community?
Socially Unconscious
Unfortunately, as with most capitalistic institutions bordering on monopoly, Spotify does not have anyone’s best interest at heart except their own. This is a fact, a fact we cannot deny if we want to make impactful, meaningful change in the music business and in society as a whole.
For some added context, this post was kick-started by someone commenting and essentially saying I am not socially conscious because Spotify supports war and therefore my proposing that leaving Spotify may not be a great idea for everyone is, by proxy, supporting war. [Insert line about living 100% ethically under unfettered capitalism; YOU CAN’T.]
Having my music on Spotify does not mean I personally endorse war, nor does it mean I don’t care that they/Ek do/does, nor does it negate everything else I am doing to bring peace and understanding into the collective consciousness, however modest or great.
All I Wanna Say Is That, They Don’t Really Care About Us
The factual truth is, the music business; the people *actually* generating and taking home big money from recordings, do not care what us little ants do as we run around blaming each other for doing or not doing x-y-z. Until we build and embrace alternative platforms, en masse, nothing we do will be enough to make an impact because they still have all the cards. (Read: money.) In order to make change, we need to extract the “cards,” and the only way to do that is to play the game carefully and silently. Then, build a new, fairer “game” with what we extract or remove/take with us if and when we do leave.
So What Do We Do?
This question needs to be applied to both the artists and the consumer.
What consumers can do right now
I myself have been using Tidal for over a year now. The problem is, there is dark money and bad deals everywhere you look in the mass-market music business, so there’s almost no escaping it, however, Tidal does treat artists better, by 1) keeping it all about the music, 2) maintaining the artists’ original sonic vision (hi-def audio), and paying a little bit better than Spotify. However, streaming itself is broken under capitalism and government-backed royalty laws, so we may need something totally new.
What Artists Can Do Right Now
Well, the point of this article is to say that; if an artist wants to gain substantial notoriety for whatever reason, there isn’t anything else artists can do if they aren’t yet established. Artists not on Spotify will never be found or have the ability to gain momentum in the way that artists on Spotify can.
As of this article’s publishing date, we are simply at the mercy of Spotify. Anyone who says otherwise either is narrow minded or might not be thinking as big as I and others that want what I want, are. What I want is global impact. I want to get the attention of the masses. Without a mega budget, there simply is. no. path. that doesn’t involve short-form and Spotify. Trust me. I HAVE TRIED. I wanted so badly to believe there was another miraculous way that I could gain momentum without money and/or these mass-marketing tools, but it is impossible.
That said, I am always open to constructive, respectful discourse, so if someone can show me an example of a pop-oriented artist breaking on a national level without Spotify, I will go study them and change my tune from impossible to improbable.
Up-and-Coming Alternative for Both
Subvert is an example of a totally new kind of platform, and even though I am a founding member, it is YEARS off of competing as a mass market alternative. Why? Because the mass public doesn’t care enough, let alone even knowing/believing they should care at all. The entertainment and music industry is intentionally opaque. You only know how it works if you get in there and poke around, something 99.9999% of consumers just don’t do.
Still, I believe in the potential of all people and that there is a path to change. As mentioned, the first obstacle we face on that path is educating consumers, which partially requires educating them to actually care about being educated. The consumer has to want to make conscious, active change in their daily life and consumption habits. This behavior and critical thinking is bred out of a society that encourages obedience and convenience, making this a daunting step on the path to mass change. Still, it is a step that needs to happen before leaving Spotify becomes a good business move for most artists.
Therefore, this; the changing of mass-market habits and perception, is not a music industry issue, but a socio-cultural one, and small artists with passion and vigor taking their music off of Spotify is not going to fulfill that obligatory step in educating the public to the point where they want to stop using Spotify.
Staying On For Now
As far as changing Spotify’s intentions and operations, taking our music off won’t do jack. Spotify can’t be changed by anyone or anything but major labels leaving Spotify or pushing Spotify to change, but they’re all in bed together, and it’s the warmest the bed’s been since 1999, so considering either option as a potential reality is laughable. About as laughable as assuming removing my music from Spotify will stop war from happening.
I am not being cynical here–just realistic. After years of trying on different perspectives, the one I’ve laid out here seems the most sensible to me. If we do make the changes necessary; if we do pull/pool our collective money and change our consumption habits, after a decade or two of doing that, we may be living in a more equitable, just and human-friendly society and music industry within it.
