Joe Rogan back at Spotify, responds to backlash — and stays controversial

Sasha Urban editorIn the wake of ebbing controversy against Spotify’s partnership with podcaster Joe Rogan, Grammy-winning songwriter Tiffany Red and the advocacy group the 100 Percenters are planning a peaceful protest against the music streaming service on Feb. 28. The 100 Percenters were founded by Red in 2020 to advocate for more equitable payments for songwriters.

As if things weren’t bad enough for the people working at Spotify following all the recent controversies around the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, now they’ve got Ted Nugent coming to their defence – and via the daily podcast he records for the pro-hunting lobby group he advises and represents. Lovely stuff.On Friday night’s edition of the ‘The Nightly Nuge’ podcast, Nugent’s co-host Keith Mark brought up how that Canadian Neil Young is again talking politics in the USA, before musing how a musician that has in the past spoken up for free speech is now pro-censorship.Which isn’t true, of course, but it was Young who instigated the artist boycott of Spotify over the COVID misinformation contained in Rogan’s Spotify exclusive podcast.Young and other artists who have spoken out about the controversial COVID conversations that have occurred on Rogan’s programme insist that they are not calling for censorship.However, they argue, platforms like Spotify have a responsibility to counter misleading information that could negatively impact on people’s health, and they’d rather not be associated with any platforms that aren’t fulfilling that responsibility.Asked what he makes of Young and his Spotify boycott, Nugent initially said some nice things about his fellow musician, but then added “the guy is a complete punk”.

Joe Rogan returned to the stand-up stage on Tuesday night where he dedicated some time to discuss the recent cultural scandal surrounding his podcast, "The Joe Rogan Experience."  The popular podcast host, whose show is exclusive to Spotify, has been the subject of scrutiny in recent days after musicians on the platform called him out for spreading COVID-19 misinformation as well as using racial slurs in past episodes. Rogan previously issued a video apology for the racial remarks and worked with the platform to remove dozens of old episodes he was no longer proud of.  However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Rogan made light of the situation during a stand-up show in Austin, Texas.Tuesday in front of a crowd of fans and supporters.

Spotify-exclusive podcast The Joe Rogan Experience this week, both on-stage and during an episode of the podcast itself.Rogan’s podcast recently prompted protest from the likes of Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Graham Nash and Nils Lofgren, with the musicians pulling their catalogues from the streaming platform.Young sparked the exodus late last month, when he requested his music be taken off Spotify, citing the platform “spreading false information about vaccines” and specifically targeting Rogan.It came after hundreds of scientists and medical professionals asked Spotify to address COVID misinformation on its platform, sparked by comments made on Rogan’s podcast – calling the host’s actions “not only objectionable and offensive but also medically and culturally dangerous”.In response, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said that, while the platform wouldn’t be severing ties with the controversial figure, they would be adding content advisories to podcast episodes which discussed COVID-19, directing users to their dedicated information hub.Rogan himself addressed the boycott on Instagram, telling fans: “I don’t always get it right. I will do my best to try to balance out these more controversial viewpoints with other people perspectives so we can maybe find a better point of view.”Shortly after, Rogan found himself embroiled in controversy again when songwriter India.Arie shared a video that compiled instances the podcast host had used the N-word on his podcast.

Joe Rogan, 54, addressed his recent controversies, including his anti-COVID vaccine rhetoric on his Spotify podcast, during a stand-up show in Austin, Texas on Feb. 8. The former actor and UFC commentator told the live audience he “talks shit for a living,” which is why he finds it “so baffling” that his listeners would rely on his opinions about the vaccines.

“Joe Rogan watchdog” for the progressive nonprofit Media Matters — shared seven clips of the 54-year-old making off-color comments during podcast interviews with various guests. Paterson posted the “Joe Rogan Experience” clips to Twitter on Monday — just days after Rogan was forced to apologize for other, older footage that featured him using the N-word.

Taking a stand. Amid the controversy surrounding Spotify’s support of comedian Joe Rogan and his podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” many stars have decided to pull their content from the streaming service in protest.

Dwayne Johnson is walking back his support of Joe Rogan.

Battling criticism for hosting The Joe Rogan Experience, a podcast denounced for the propagation of Covid-19 vaccine misinformation and Rogan’s use of the N-word in 70 episodes, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek released a memo to his employees expressing how “deeply sorry” he is for the way the podcast affected his employees.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorSpotify CEO Daniel Ek, under fire from critics inside and outside the company over its partnership with Joe Rogan, said in a memo to employees that was “deeply sorry” for how the controversy over the podcast host has affected them.But in the wake of the company removing 70 past episodes of his podcast and Rogan’s use of the N-word on his show, Ek signaled that Spotify does not plan to end its deal to distribute “The Joe Rogan Experience.”“I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer… canceling voices is a slippery slope,” he wrote in the memo Sunday, which was obtained by Variety.Ek said he is “committing to an incremental investment of $100 million for the licensing, development, and marketing of music (artists and songwriters) and audio content from historically marginalized groups.” “If we believe in having an open platform as a core value of the company, then we must also believe in elevating all types of creators, including those from underrepresented communities and a diversity of backgrounds,” the CEO wrote.Rogan has been a controversial figure ever since Spotify inked its exclusive deal with him in 2020, his hosting of right-wing personalities on “The Joe Rogan Experience.” The latest controversy over coronavirus misinformation on Rogan’s podcast has gone beyond the low-boil level that has previously accompanied outrage over comments on his podcast. That was led by Neil Young, who demanded Spotify pull his songs or drop Rogan, and has been followed by a few other artists and creators.According to Ek, Spotify has had conversations “with Joe and his team about some of the content in his show, including his history of using some racially insensitive language.

Whitney Cummings is getting a lot of attention for her thoughts on the Joe Rogan controversy, after 70 episodes of his program were pulled due to his repeated use of the N-word, as well as several artists pulling their discography off of Spotify for COVID misinformation shared on his podcast.

Dwayne Johnson is pulling back on his support of Joe Rogan in light of the recently unearthed compilation video, publicized by India Arie, in which the comedian is seen using the N-word nearly two dozen times in past episodes of his podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience.”

Dwayne Johnson is pulling back on his support of Joe Rogan in light of the recently unearthed compilation video, publicized by India Arie, in which the comedian is seen using the N-word nearly two dozen times in past episodes of his podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience.”

Spotify users have cancelled their subscriptions since the controversy around Joe Rogan’s podcast broke out.In January, hundreds of scientists and medical professionals asked Spotify to address COVID-19 misinformation on its platform, sparked by comments made on The Joe Rogan Experience. The 270-plus members of the science and medical community signed an open letter, which called Rogan’s actions “not only objectionable and offensive but also medically and culturally dangerous”.Following the publishing of that letter, Neil Young demanded his music be “immediately” removed from the platform, with many high-profile artists like Joni Mitchell, David Crosby and Graham Nash following suit.Now, as Variety reports, a consumer poll from Forrester Research has found that 19 per cent of the streaming service’s customers have since cancelled their subscriptions, or plan to in the near future.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorHow big of a liability vs. an asset will Joe Rogan prove to be for Spotify? A new survey sheds some light on which way the wind might blow given the spate of #DeleteSpotify and #CancelSpotify hashtags that blew up on social media in recent days — although similar past customer backlashes have resulted in minimal damage.About 19% of Spotify users said they have already canceled their service — or plan to — over the Rogan uproar, according to a Feb.

Spotify over comments made on his podcast.Neil Young was the first to pull his music due to Rogan spreading “misinformation” about COVID-19, with Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash following in solidarity.Spotify CEO Daniel Ek responded to the row in an official statement, saying that Spotify would be adding COVID-19 content advisories to all relevant podcast episodes and Rogan himself has publicly addressed the backlash in a post discussing “some of the controversy that’s been going on over the past few days”.Now, Stewart has waded into the row on his own podcast The Problem With Jon Stewart saying artists’ actions towards Rogan were “a mistake”.“There’s no question that there is egregious misinformation that’s purposeful and hateful, and that being moderated is a credit to the platforms that run them,” Stewart said. “But this overreaction to Rogan, I think, is a mistake.”He pointed to an episode of the Joe Rogan Experience in which Rogan argued with Australian media personality Josh Szeps about whether COVID-19 itself or its vaccine was more likely to make patients vulnerable to myocarditis.When the two disagreed, Rogan offered to look it up, and when he was proven wrong he accepted it.As a result, Stewart believed that Rogan was open to other opinions and urged artists not to not “leave, abandon or censor” but instead “engage”.Meanwhile, India.Arie has become one of the latest artists to leave Spotify over Rogan’s “language around race”.

Former Mumford & Sons band member Winston Marshall released a lengthy essay comparing calls for action against Joe Rogan’s podcast on Spotify to Soviet-era censorship.  On Thursday, Marshall released an essay on Substack with the title "When Artists Become the Censors" in which he criticizes artists like Neil Young, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Joni Mitchell, Nils Lofgren and India Arie, all of whom have pulled their music off Spotify until it addresses misinformation on "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast.  In his essay, Marshall begins by discussing the state of music censorship in the Soviet Union in 1984 before comparing it to the conditions that Spotify is facing today as calls for it to pull Rogan’s work mount. He even called out Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who previously voiced their "concerns" about misinformation on Spotify.  "Of course, Spotify is a private company; they’re under no obligation to platform anybody.

Many of the top musicians in the industry are making their voices heard – by taking their voices away.