Let's talk Spotify.

There has been a movement in recent years to boycott Spotify because it supposedly pays so little per stream.  Although this is true when you compare the amount you would make per stream versus how much you would make per track when selling an album outright, the truth is that Spotify really helps independent artists gain a following.

The first year I released my music, I actually made the most money on Apple Music.  I believe that the reason for this was because people bought my tracks outright through iTunes instead of just streaming them through the Apple Music service.  However, I started slowly gaining more and more streams through Spotify that initial year, and the next year I made more money on Spotify than on any other streaming service.  So, while other streaming services may pay more per stream (although Spotify still places higher than several other major streaming platforms), Spotify does much more to get your music to new listeners by delivering your music through different “for you” playlists  and algorithms that are catered to individual listeners' musical taste.

So, when my friends started posting about how they were boycotting Spotify because they don't pay artists enough, I decided to speak up.  I've had many conversations, in person and online, about how Spotify has actually made me more money as an independent recording artist that any other platform combined.  I am constantly being added to people's private and public playlists which I can view through the app, Spotify for Artists.  However, I would also like to point out that I make absolutely nothing from YouTube, despite the misleading figure above stating that they pay $0.002 per stream.  In reality, I have to pay an extra $17 per track for my distributor to pay me YouTube's $0.002 per stream.  I honestly don't think I would break even with those statistics, so I have never paid to release my music on YouTube, however, through some streaming loophole, my music is released anyways on YouTube through my distributor (Distrokid) but I see absolutely zero dollars through it.  So when someone tells me that they listen to their favorite artists through YouTube, I always suggest any other streaming service!

However, I got a random notification from my distributor today that I had received royalties from streaming, so I naturally went to check it to see how much I earned.  When I opened the app, a warning screen immediately popped up and claimed “Spotify has detected that a significant number of streams on the track below are artificial”.  I looked to see what track it was, and noticed that it was my most popular track that I released in 2020, “Moonlight”.  I was absolutely appalled.  I couldn't believe that they would claim that any of my streams were artificial, as this specific track had gotten significantly more streams than my other tracks, but with regular, slowly trackable growth.  It didn't just shoot up with a ridiculous amount of streams overnight.

To make matters worse, on the next screen, they accused me of paying for streams or playlist placement, and then proceeded to school me on how to recognize a scam that promised plays.  I was patiently awaiting the screen where I could explain that this was normal growth and that this one track was more popular than my other tracks and had just seen more growth since its release.

However, instead of giving me a chance to fight their decision, they further accused me of using paid services to get streams, and then left me a tiny space to tell Spotify which services I wrongfully used.  I used this space to tell them that this was terrible, but I wasn't able to tell them all of my thoughts since they limited my number of characters to a tiny amount.  I did click on the link to Spotify's actual website, and instead of giving me space to try and defend myself, they prompted me to link a specific playlist where my song was being wrongfully streamed!

To say that I am appalled by this treatment is an understatement.  I can't believe that after four years of faithfully using this service, they decide to throw me under the bus, deny my the money that I am owed from streams that I earned from legitimate fans, and not even allow me to defend myself, all the while continually accusing me of wrongdoing.

I was vehemently against boycotting Spotify in the past, but if you're looking for a reason to boycott them, this is it.  They are not doing their artists any favors by denying them rightfully earned stream money.  This is pinching pennies from independent artists who are making barely anything anyways.  I guess they have to earn their yacht money somehow.

I won't be removing my music from Spotify, because I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place.  I made almost $400 from 87,000 streams there, yet my 4 million plus streams on FB and Instagram only yielded me $50, so clearly, Spotify is still the front runner.  I just wish there was something to do about huge corporations giving you zero option to defend yourself.  Unfortunately, writing a blog and trying to get views is my only option right now.

I still believe Spotify is the best platform for independent artists, but I wish there was a smaller run, better paying option.  One can dream, right?