Joni Mitchell, others join Spotify Boycott: ‘I stand with Neil Young!’, WHO adds support

UPDATED: Joni Mitchell is is pulling her music off Spotify in solidarity with Neil Young and the fight against COVID disinformation spread by Spotify-exclusive podcaster Joe Rogan.

“Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives,” Mitchell wrote in message posted on her website under the headline I Stand With Neil Young. “I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue.”

And just as they did after Young’s takedown, Apple Music took full advantage with an on-service Joni Lives here campaign.

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band guitarist Nils Lofgren also is pulling his songs from Spotify.

In a statement posted on Young’s website Saturday, Lofgren called music “Earth’s secret weapon” and urged others to stand with “hundreds of health care professionals, scientists, doctors and nurses in calling out Spotify for promoting lies and misinformation that are hurting and killing people.”

So far there has not been a rush of other significant artists joining the boycott. But that could change and some independent podcasters are already vowing to stop distributing episodes on Spotify.

UPDATE

The head of the World Health Organization weighed in supporting Young’s campaign.

James Blunt jokingly threatened to release his new music on Spotify if the offending podcast by Joe Rogan was not taken down.

The English singer-songwriter wrote on Twitter on Saturday:

Bruce Houghton is Founder and Editor of Hypebot and MusicThinkTank and serves as a Senior Advisor to Bandsintown which acquired both publications in 2019. He is the Founder and President of the Skyline Artists Agency and a professor for the Berklee College Of Music.