Neil Young recently put his music back on Spotify, ending a boycott that he began in 2022 to protest the digital streaming platform’s then-exclusive deal with Joe Rogan. Joni Mitchell had also pulled her music from Spotify, in solidarity with Young, and she has now joined Young in his return, as The Guardian notes. Pitchfork has reached out to Mitchell and Spotify’s respective representatives for comment and more information.
Young got his music removed from Spotify after accusing the platform of spreading COVID-19 misinformation by hosting the popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
When she also departed Spotify in 2022, Mitchell wrote, “I’ve decided to remove all my music from Spotify. Irresponsible people are 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.”
Rogan’s podcast is no longer exclusive to Spotify, appearing also on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music. As a result, Young is now begrudgingly content with his music being on Spotify because, were he to pull out from all digital streaming platforms, his “music would have very little streaming outlet to music lovers at all,” he wrote.
