Deadmau5 considering removing music from Spotify after Daniel Ek’s comments: “Fucking vultures”

27 June, 2024

A composite image of Deadmau5 and Daniel Ek

Deadmau5 has spoken out against Spotify following comments made by the streaming platform’s CEO Daniel Ek last month about the cost of “creating content”.

In late May, Ek – who also co-founded Spotify – made comments implying that it is easier and more affordable than ever to create “content” thanks to modern technology. “Today, with the cost of creating content being close to zero, people can share an incredible amount of content. This has sparked my curiosity about the concept of long shelf life versus short shelf life,” he wrote.

“While much of what we see and hear quickly becomes obsolete, there are timeless ideas or even pieces of music that can remain relevant for decades or even centuries,” he added, before questioning: “What are we creating now that will still be valued and discussed hundreds or thousands of years from today?”

Needless to say, the comments were quick to spark a response from across the online community, with countless music lovers and musicians coming forward to criticise the CEO as being “out of touch”.

This past weekend, Deadmau5 – the electronic producer and DJ, whose real name is Joel Zimmerman – wrote on Instagram: “Incorrect. The cost of creating content was 25+ years of my life and much of those proceeds going to your company, you complete fucking idiot.”

In the comments, a fan typed that they “hate” Spotify, prompting Zimmerman to reply: “I feel that, I’m about to pull my catalog from these fucking vultures, enough’s enough.”

Prior to Deadmau5’s comments, Daniel Ek walked back his post, explaining in an apology that he had no intention of dismissing the struggles faced by musicians and using the “reductive” label of “content”, and instead “was most interested in exploring was how, in this environment of constant creation, we can identify and ensure that the bold, exciting, world-changing ideas and pieces of art don’t get lost in the noise.”

Before Daniel Ek’s apology, Spotify rival Tidal tweeted in response: “Come on, Daniel. Art is priceless and its ‘cost’ is much more than just money, it’s heart and effort,” it wrote, replying to a news report sharing Ek’s statements. “We thought everyone knew that.”

Part of the criticism towards Ek’s latest comments may have also stemmed from the recent reports that Spotify have made record profits of over €1billion (£860m) – following staff being laid off and subscription prices rising.

At the end of 2023, Spotify announced that it was cutting down 17 per cent of its workforce in order to save costs. That was after an earlier decision to lay off another 6 per cent of its staff at the start of 2023, which at the time it said was to promote “speed”.

It also came following the news that the streaming service had officially demonetised all songs on the platform with less than 1,000 streams. The policy was launched on April 1, but had been planned by the platform for some time. It was quickly criticised for making it harder for artists to generate royalties from their music and restricting new artists looking to crack the music industry.

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