Joni Mitchell Calls For Spotify To Remove Her Music Amid Row Over Covid Misinformation

Daniel Welsh
·1 min read
Joni Mitchell pictured in 2019 (Photo: Lester Cohen via Getty Images)
Joni Mitchell pictured in 2019 (Photo: Lester Cohen via Getty Images)

Music legend Joni Mitchell has requested that Spotify pull her songs from their service amid a row over Covid misinformation.

The Both Sides Now singer joins fellow musician Neil Young, who successfully had his back catalogue pulled from the platform this week, as it hosts Joe Rogan’s podcast, on which the presenter has previously been accused of spreading false information about coronavirus and the Covid vaccine.

In a message posted on her official website, Joni did not mention Joe Rogan by name, but did state that she “stands with Neil Young”.

“I’ve decided to remove all my music from Spotify,” she explained. “Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives.

“I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue.”

Neil Young performing in 2019 (Photo: Gary Miller via Getty Images)
Neil Young performing in 2019 (Photo: Gary Miller via Getty Images)

Joni also shared an open letter signed by a group of scientists and medical professionals which called out Spotify for continuing to broadcast The Joe Rogan Experience.

Responding to Neil Young’s comments earlier this week, a Spotify rep said: “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom for creators.

“We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to Covid since the start of the pandemic.

“We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon”.

The Joe Rogan Experience was acquired by Spotify in 2020, reportedly for more than $100 million dollars (around £77 million).

This article originally appeared on HuffPost UK and has been updated.

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