Joni Mitchell, Neil Young Cave After Unsuccessful Joe Rogan Power Play With Spotify

Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell removed her music from Spotify in 2022 in protest of the distribution of the "Joe Rogan Experience." 

She joined Neil Young in a stance against Rogan's coverage of Covid-19.

Mitchell penned an open letter to Spotify on her website, accusing Rogan of "promoting baseless conspiracy theories" with a "history of broadcasting misinformation, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic."

"I’ve decided to remove all my music from Spotify. 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," she concluded.

The two musicians projected their protests would prompt Spotify to cease association with Rogan, or at least police what they deemed "false information" about the pandemic. 

However, Spotify stood by Rogan, its biggest draw in the podcast space. The service doubled down. 

Spotify re-signed Rogan in February for a new multi-year deal worth up to $250 million, between a minimum upfront guarantee and potential revenue shares based on ad sales.

Neil Young decided to add his music back to Spotify earlier this month, realizing he was out of leverage. Mitchell followed last week.

Mitchell and Young miscalculated. Spotify didn't cave. Mitchell and Young caved, instead.

See, Joe Rogan's podcast is more critical to the business plan of Spotify than the music library of any artist, particularly those of Mitchell and Young at this point in their careers.

No offense.

But look at the data:

Such likely played a role in Rogan's decision to remain part of the Spotify umbrella.  "Spotify has hung in with me, inexplicably," he recently said.

Various platforms would have chosen perception over finances.  

Spotify, to its credit, did not. 

Still, don't be surprised if other music artists try to use their libraries to try and control Rogan's podcast ahead of the 2024 elections.  Musicians struggle to fathom of how little importance they are in the saturated land of streaming.