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Joe Rogan attracts plenty of attention not only due to the massive popularity of his podcast but also his assumed stances against the handling of COVID-19 in the mainstream. However, his presence or Spotify has been somewhat disruptive to the business and Rogan took time to apologize to the DSP as a result.
Rogan, who hosts the popular The Joe Rogan Experience, entered into an exclusive $100 million deal with the audio streaming service as part of its slate of original podcast programming. Rogan built an audience based on candid conversations and the occasional controversial guests, and part of that is why singer Neil Young opted to remove his entire catalog from Spotify.
Young says his decision to take his music off the DSP was based on Rogan allowing guests to spread misinformation regarding COVID-19. Along with Young, Nils Lofgren and Joni Mitchell have opted to remove their music from the service in solidarity.
Via an Instagram video post, Rogan addressed the controversy and apologized for the disturbance he’s caused while also vowing to approach such matters with care in the future.
“These podcasts are very strange because they’re just conversations,” Rogan in the video. “I have no idea what I’m going to talk about until I sit down and talk to people. And that’s why some of my ideas are not that prepared or fleshed out because I’m literally having them in real-time, but I do my best and they’re just conversations, and I think that’s also the appeal of the show. It’s one of the things that makes it interesting. So I want to thank Spotify for being so supportive during this time, and I’m very sorry that this is happening to them and that they’re taking so much from it.”
Rogan hosted Dr. Peter McCullough and Dr. Robert Malone on the program in respective appearances with both gentlemen sharing their views on COVID-19 which Rogan defended and said he highlighted because it went against the “mainstream narrative.”
It isn’t known if other artists will join in the Spotify exodus but the service says it routinely monitors its content for violation of its broadcast terms.
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