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Many artists are focused on how fans will receive their music as well as not wanting to deal with the big music companies who care mainly about profits. Caroline Rose claimed she also feels more fulfilled selling directly to fans, growing a more meaningful connection with her audience.

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One alternative is Bandcamp which allows consumers to pay the artists directly rather than through Spotify. This can appeal to musicians because they will get all the money they earned and exceed their income if they hadn't left Spotify.

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The author wants readers to take away the fact that personal convictions are worth fighting for. Even if it costs something, sticking to your values is more beneficial in the long run than following the crowd or going with the flow.

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Spotify claims their payout model matches other streaming services while Jamie Stewart claims it doesn't do any good for artists but rather just for the company and while he knows that leaving Spotify won't effect their company financially it will still be a message to stand up to tech companies and their motives.

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Money isn’t a main motivation for the artists but rather the art that they create

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The boycotts that were mentioned were also led by artists that were displeased by decisions made by Spotify. This includes disputes of low royalties and exclusively hosting the Joe Rogan Experience which led to controversy about spreading misinformation about COVID-19.

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The artists are receiving a better cut of the profit and at a quicker rate as opposed to Spotify

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The decline to comment speaks volumes and does not directly address the concerns of the musicians. Offering the fact that their payout method is similar to other platforms seems like a cop-out

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Most previous boycotts have been tied to the company’s decision-making

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Terms like “oligarch,” and phrases like “we don’t want our music killing people” convey strong emotion from the musicians. The use of “want” illustrates their bias and feelings toward the CEO’s investments.

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The artists don’t want their works being tied directly to military funding of any kind, which they associate with killing

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An interesting/surprising discovery we had during the passage was that Spotify is the world’s largest streaming service with nearly 700 million users

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8. SeArtists acknowledge there are drawbacks—limiting their reach and relying more on direct fan engagement or touring—but many feel the tradeoffs are worth it for their principles and community. At the heart of this movement is a call for more ethical business practices in the music industry and a hope that fans will understand and support these choices.

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7. Singer Kadhja Bonet has also left Spotify and similar platforms, choosing to release her upcoming work exclusively on independent outlets. She wrote:
“I put a lot of thought and love into the music I make, so it's only right to put the same thought into the way it's delivered.”
Caroline Rose, another artist, says that after years of frustration with the music industry's focus on profits and stats, she released her new album solely through Bandcamp and at live shows.
“It's been extremely fulfilling, and personally, I needed this just to feel a little bit more connection to my fans and to the audience... I want a career of quality rather than any and everything quantifiable. I don't want to be hounded by stats and money and how many ticket sales I'm selling.”

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6. Alternative distribution methods are gaining popularity among departing artists. Several have started selling directly to fans through platforms like Bandcamp or Qobuz. Hotline TNT’s Will Anderson hosted a livestream to promote album sales, noting:
“Anderson, who started Hotline TNT as a solo project several years ago, sold over 300 copies of the album on Bandcamp alone, which he says accounts for more profit in 24 hours than the band usually makes in months of Spotify streams.”

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5. Spotify and Helsing both declined to comment on the recent exodus. In a statement, Spotify emphasized that its payout model matches those of other major streaming services and that in 2024, the company paid $10 billion to the music industry. However, many artists feel these payments do not fairly reach them—especially independents. Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu said,
“It has not done anything good for bands. It has done good things for itself.” Stewart acknowledged the sacrifice, saying the band would notice the loss of Spotify revenue, but explained: “It's not going to make any difference to Spotify. But it is a very, very small way of standing up to what tech companies have become.”

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4. This is not the first artist-led boycott of Spotify. In previous years, high-profile names left the platform for different reasons—low royalties (Thom Yorke, Taylor Swift), or disagreements over content such as the platform’s exclusive hosting of The Joe Rogan Experience, which led Neil Young and Joni Mitchell to remove their music in protest of COVID-19 misinformation.

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3. For many musicians, knowing Spotify profits are connected to military technology is unacceptable. As Deerhoof wrote in a statement to NPR:
“We don’t want our music killing people. We don’t want our success being tied to AI battle tech... If the price of ‘discoverability’ is letting oligarchs fill the globe with computerized weaponry, we’re going to pass on the supposed benefits.”

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2. The primary reason cited by artists is Spotify CEO Daniel Ek’s investment in Helsing, an artificial intelligence defense company developing technology for military use. Ek’s firm invested over $100 million into Helsing in 2021, and in June 2025, raised another $700 million for the company. As chairman, Ek has publicly stated he is “doubling down” on these defense investments, inspired in part by how AI impacts modern warfare, such as the conflict in Ukraine. Reports say Helsing now produces its own drones, aircraft, and submarines.

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Article Text

1. Over the summer, a wave of artists—many from the indie music scene—announced on social media that they’d be removing their music from Spotify, the world’s largest streaming service with nearly 700 million users. Indie rock band Deerhoof started the trend in June, and others like Xiu Xiu, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Hotline TNT, The Mynabirds, and Kadhja Bonet soon followed. This continued into September, raising the question: Why are so many independent musicians leaving a platform with such massive reach?