Grammy-winning artist India.Arie posted it on her Instagram, using the hashtag #DeleteSpotify. The scrutiny only intensified when a video compilation emerged last week showing Rogan repeatedly using racial slurs. Other artists followed suit, including Joni Mitchell and Roxane Gay. Rogan's public troubles started on January 24, when musician Neil Young asked to have his music removed because of concerns that Rogan was promoting scepticism about the COVID-19 vaccines. The company had 31 per cent of the 524 million music streaming subscriptions worldwide in the second quarter of 2021, more than double that of second-place Apple Music, according to Midia Research. Spotify reports having 406 million active monthly users, up nearly 20 per cent from last year, and advertising has grown largely because of podcasting. "They need to settle up with Rogan, let him go to a home that will be consistent with who he is.
The artists make Spotify," Professor Gordon said. Rogan stands in contrast to the much more liberal musicians who generate the bulk of Spotify's profits, he said. The bottom-line question should be pretty simple for Spotify, said Erik Gordon, a University of Michigan business and law professor. "This is a big moment of reckoning for entertainment and streaming platforms to see where the window is, what's over the line." "There's some real self-examination to be doing beyond Joe," he said. The streaming site also has to decide whether offensive words are allowable elsewhere on its app, where songs with racist, homophobic and anti-immigrant messages are available, said John Wihbey, a Northeastern University professor and specialist in emerging technologies. He has the right to say what he wants,' that continues on the line where there is this implicit support to say racist things on these platforms," she said in an interview before Mr Ek's letter. On race, the choice is between keeping Rogan and sending a message that society has become too "woke" or showing that Spotify is more attuned to a multiracial society, said Adia Harvey Wingfield, a sociology professor at Washington University. It comes as a website that tracks Rogan's podcast episodes on Spotify, JRE Missing, reported that more than 100 episodes have recently been taken down from the streaming service. He said he was "deeply sorry" for the impact the controversy was having on Spotify's workforce. "Looking at the issue more broadly, it's critical thinking and open debate that powers real and necessary progress." "We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but cancelling voices is a slippery slope," he said. It reportedly paid $US100 million ($140 million) to exclusively host the podcast, so dropping Rogan threatens the bottom line but is also a key part of the company's strategy to be a one-stop shop for audio. Spotify to add content advisories to podcasts discussing COVID-19.