All of it really could come crashing down, couldn’t it?
Taylor Swift fans have become the latest crowd to push for a star’s music to be pulled from Spotify over the ongoing Joe Rogan controversy – although the singer is yet to hint at any decision herself.
Were she to answer the call, the 32-year-old singer would be the third high-profile artist to removed her discography from the platform, with Neil Young acting as the catalyst and Joni Mitchell following shortly after.
The storm around Rogan’s allegations of covid misinformation only seems to be growing larger – even Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have raised the issue – and Swift’s audience is currently at its centre.
They’ve even started their own petition:
Who else thinks that if Taylor Swift DITCHES Spotify for choosing Joe Rogan's Covid lies, Spotify's stock would never be able to Shake It Off?🖐️
Then RT NOW & sign below! She's ditched them before 'til they backed down + she will again if we ask her!👇https://t.co/KksRCMLo0C
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) January 27, 2022
Hey @Spotify – bad call. Really bad call. Choosing the side of disinformation in the middle of a GLOBAL PANDEMIC. Wow. I hope other artists – @taylorswift13 @Adele @Madonna – will align themselves with Neil Young.
— Peter Paige (@ThePeterPaige) January 26, 2022
Moreover, her millions of followers seem to think she could hit the big red button and go nuclear with a single tweet, given that she is in the top 10 streamed artists in the world (25,871,367,492 lead streams) – even with her prolonged absence.
Muting this thread because the bots and Rogan groupies found me.
— I'm Just Kendra (she/her) (@kendrasmills) January 29, 2022
*waits patiently for Taylor Swift to end Spotify*
— Jules (@gurlfromthebus) January 29, 2022
As alluded to, others have pointed out that Swift has had run-ins with Spotify before and did, in fact, pull her music for more than three years over a royalties dispute.
Her decision to boycott the platform caused plenty of debate at the time but many now believe the justification f0r a potential pulling of the plug is more clear cut than ever.
https://twitter.com/redlorswift/status/1487489591657447424?s=20&t=Oxm3rgLCtLHQg0MhfxFm1Q
The way this tweet is bringing out the absolute worst of every internet subculture… thank god for therapy.
— Carlos Maza (@gaywonk) January 29, 2022
Amid the growing pressure from the medical and scientific community, political commentators, Taylor Swift fans and other big musicians, the controversial 54-year-old podcaster and comedian has actually responded to the controversy, confessing that while he is “not a scientist” he believes his podcasts are about “conversations” and are simply providing the opportunity for people to hear differing opinions.
As for Spotify themselves, they have since revealed that shares are now recovering following the market dip prior to Rogan’s response but are yet to publicly address whether or not they will examine Rogan’s content.
The Joe Rogan Experience is by far and away the site’s most popular podcast, with the show boasting some their highest ratings and over 11 million listeners per episode. With Rogan having struck a deal worth over $100 million back in May 2020, it’s easy to see both parties want this saga to be over and done with.
Related links:
- James Blunt threatens to release new music on Spotify if they don’t remove Joe Rogan
- Anti-vaxxer Laurence Fox says he’s got covid-19 – and is taking Ivermectin to treat it
- Doctors demand Spotify take action over Joe Rogan covid misinformation
