Taylor Swift Explains Why '1989' Will Not Be On Spotify, Entertainment Analyst Thinks She's Fighting A Losing Battle
Spotify has been called a lot of things, usually positive, as it allows music lovers to listen to songs virtually for free. However, Taylor Swift recently labeled it as an "experiment" that does not "fairly compensate." An analyst, however, thinks she's fighting a losing battle.
Even though Taylor Swift's album "1989" is topping the charts and selling like hotcakes, everyone is questioning why she would pull her music out of Spotfy and other music streaming sites. She was quick to give her reason, which she was consistent in saying even on previous interviews.
In an interview with Yahoo, Taylor Swift shared that she just could not let her new album be streamed because of all the scary implications for her, the music industry, and the art's world in general. For her, the landscape of music industry had been changing so fast and so much that a new trend such as Spotify feels like a "grand experiment." And because she views it as an experiment, she reportedly cannot trust her creativity and hard work, as well as those of her team, to it. "I'm not willing to contribute my life's work to an experiment that I don't feel fairly compensates the writers, producers, artists, and creators of this music," she said.
She also believes vehemently that artists should put value to their own work more than anyone. Their works should not just be enjoyed by others for free, which she thinks her message would be if she allowed her music to be on Spotify. "I just don't agree with perpetuating the perception that music has no value and should be free," she told Yahoo. She reportedly does not like to send out the message to her fans who may also be creative and artistic that it is okay to create something and then get nothing from it in return.
However, Time also released a report that Taylor Swift may be too hasty on her decision and that she's losing the battle. The magazine cited Russ Crupnick, an entertainment analyst at NPD Group, who said that streaming cannot be considered piracy anymore. Spotify works because no one can create scarcity anymore, the analyst said. Those who cannot access Swift's music on Spotify can access it on other sites, such as YouTube, ITunes Radio and so on. The analyst said that the choice is not between Spotify and album sales; rather, Spotify and other existing less lucrative streaming alternatives. Even if Spotify causes artists to lose some profit, artists also stand to earn less or even nothing with other alternatives such as YouTube and SoundCloud, the analyst said.