Classic Rock
Joni Mitchell Removes Music from Spotify: “I Stand in Solidarity with Neil Young”
Joni Mitchell has followed Neil Young’s lead and removed her music from Spotify. “I’ve decided to remove all my music from Spotify,” Mitchell said in a brief note posted to her website on Friday. “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.” On Wednesday, at Young’s request, Spotify removed his music from its catalog. Days earlier, the singer-songwriter issued an open letter to his management and record label demanding that his music be taken down from Spotify due to the streaming service’s spread of “fake information about vaccines.” Young specifically took issue with Spotify’s promotion of the Joe Rogan Experience, which has become a breeding ground for ...
#CancelSpotify Trends on Twitter Following Neil Young Spat
Spotify’s decision to remove Neil Young’s catalog from the platform in order to keep peddling COVID misinformation via podcasts like The Joe Rogan Experience has sparked quite a lot of online discourse about free speech, streaming, and the best way to support artists. The hashtag “#CancelSpotify” trended among Young fans on Twitter Thursday evening (January 27th), and other artists and streaming platforms joined the conversation as well. Apple Music, TIDAL, Deezer, and Qobuz made sure to remind fans that they still offered Young’s music, while SiriusXM relaunched Neil Young Radio. “When you have an opportunity to present an iconic artist still at the height of his creativity, you don’t hesitate to do it, again,” Steve Blatter, SiriusXM senior vice president and general manager of musi...
Spotify Sides with Joe Rogan Over Neil Young, Removes His Music
Spotify has begun the process of removing Neil Young’s music from its catalog. The move was done at the singer-songwriter’s request, who cited his disgust over the proliferation of “fake information about vaccines” on the streaming platform. Young specifically took issue with Spotify’s promotion of the Joe Rogan Experience, which has become a breeding ground for false COVID information. “I want all my music off their platform. They can have Rogan or Young. Not both,” Young wrote in an open letter sent to his management and record label on Monday. In a statement acknowledging Young’s request, a Spotify representative said, “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom...
Elton John Postpones Concerts After Testing Positive for COVID-19
The Rocketman is going to cool his jets for a while. As Sir Elton John revealed in his Instagram stories, he’s tested positive for COVID-19, and has been forced to postpone two upcoming shows on his “Farewell Yellow Brick Road: The Final Tour.” “I have contracted COVID and so have had to reschedule my shows in Dallas,” he wrote. “Fortunately, I’m fully vaccinated and boosted and my symptoms are mild so I’m fully expecting to be able to make the Arkansas shows this weekend. As always, thank you for all your love and support and I can’t wait to see you all soon!” Those with tickets to the two Dallas shows will be contacted soon with new dates. Check out his full statement below. Advertisement Related Video John returned to the stage earlier this month with a show at New Orleans’ Smoothi...
Jack Black Pays Homage to Meat Loaf: “Thank You for Rocking So Hard”
Jack Black has paid his respects to the late Meat Loaf, thanking the legendary singer for “rocking so hard.” It’s not hard to see how Black was inspired by Meat Loaf, considering the comedic actor’s theatrical and bombastic approach to rock music as part of the duo Tenacious D. In his tribute, Black cited the impact Meat Loaf made on him at a young age, and expressed gratitude to the rock icon for appearing in the movie Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny. “I think I was 9 years old when my big sister took me to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” wrote Black on Instagram. “Meat Loaf rocked the hell out of that movie. 25 years later I begged him to play my father in my band’s movie The Pick of Destiny and by god he rocked the hell out of that one too. Thank you Meat for rocking so hard!!! M...
Bob Dylan Sells Recorded Music Catalog to Sony for $200 Million
Bob Dylan has struck a deal with Sony Music to sell the rights to his recorded music catalog. According to Billboard, the transaction is valued at over $200 million. The deal includes all of Dylan’s recordings – 39 studio albums, 16 Bootleg Series compilations, and numerous singles and rarities – plus unreleased material that could be released in the future, according to Billboard. The 80-year-old songwriter previously sold his catalog’s publishing rights to Universal in a deal estimated to be worth over $300 million. (Recording rights pertain to the individual master recordings of songs, while publishing rights refer to the words and music that make up a musical composition. In theory, publishing rights are more valuable, as an artist could always re-record their music. Publishing rights ...
Neil Young Demands Spotify Remove His Music Over Spread of Vaccine Disinformation
Neil Young has relaunched his crusade against Spotify, though this time, it’s not about audio quality. The rock veteran has asked the streaming giant to remove his music from the platform, citing “fake information about vaccines” the company has allowed to spread. Young delivered the request in an open letter to his management and record label, though the letter seems to have been removed from his website. Per Rolling Stone, however, Young writes: “I am doing this because Spotify is spreading fake information about vaccines — potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them. Please act on this immediately today and keep me informed of the time schedule.” “I want you to let Spotify know immediately TODAY that I want all my music off their platform,” You...
Anthrax’s Scott Ian Pays Tribute to Father-in-Law Meat Loaf: “There Are So Many Stories I Want to Tell”
Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian has posted a tribute to his father-in-law, Meat Loaf, who passed away at age 74 on Thursday (January 20th). The veteran metal musician is married to the late singer’s adopted stepdaughter, Pearl Aday. Ian posted two photos on Instagram, including one of Pearl and her sister Amanda making silly faces with Meat Loaf, and another of Meat Loaf having fun with his grandson Revel (Scott and Pearl’s child). “There are so many stories to tell, and I know they will all be told over time,” wrote Ian. “For now, what I know is that Meat’s legacy will live on through his family — Pearl, Amanda and Revel. Their forever love for their father/grandfather (Papa Meat) outweighs the heaviness of their hearts. Thank you to everyone for the outpouring of love, we feel it. I love you...
Bob Dylan Unveils “Never Ending Tour” Dates for Spring 2022
Bob Dylan’s “Never Ending Tour” is back. Today, the legendary singer-songwriter announced the next leg of his expedition around the world for Spring 2022, in support of his most recent album, 2020’s Rough and Rowdy Ways. Dylan’s “Never Ending Tour” resumes in Phoenix on March 3rd. The 27-date run will take him primarily through the southwest US over the course of five weeks, wrapping up in Oklahoma City on April 14th. If your city has yet to be announced, however, have no fear: Dylan’s website teases the “Never Ending Tour” as continuing all the way through 2024, with more dates to be announced. As for this run, a ticket pre-sale begins on January 27th at 10:00 a.m. local time, with general on-sale on the 28th. Grab your tickets over at Ticketmaster. Advertisement Related Video Prepare for...
Ozzy Osbourne’s CryptoBatz NFTs Hit by Scam That Bilked Users Out of Thousands of Dollars
A few weeks ago, Ozzy Osbourne announced his new CryptoBatz NFT collection, making 9,666 unique digital bat designs available to those willing to part with their cryptocurrency. Now it turns out that a large number of people were scammed out of thousands of dollars worth of crypto thanks to a bad link shared by the project’s official Twitter account and website. As tech site The Verge reports, Cryptobatz uses the site Discord for its transactions and initially used the shot URL “discord.gg/cryptobatznft” (do NOT click) in its Twitter posts. Somewhere along the line, the official short link was changed to discord.gg/cryptobatz, but hackers took advantage of the old URL to set up a fake Discord site. Unfortunately, Ozzy and his partner companies still left up the old Tweets with the old link...
Neil Young Unveils Documentary on Making of New Album BARN: Watch
Back in December, Neil Young and Crazy Horse released BARN, an album recorded in a restored 19th century farm shed. Now, they’ve released a documentary on the making of the album. Stream it for free via YouTube below. Recorded in the Summer of 2021, BARN (the album) marked Young’s 14th long player with Crazy Horse, and saw the folk veteran reunite with longtime bandmates Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina, and Nils Lofgren. Directed by Young’s wife Daryl Hannah, BARN (the film) takes an organic approach to documenting the recording process. Single shots depict the band recording entire songs, which is Hannah’s attempt to show the group’s chemistry and prove that no studio tricks polished the album’s finished product. The documentary enjoyed a limited run in theaters last month to coincid...
Elvis Costello Says He “Doesn’t Like Much Rock Music” Released Now
Today in Old White Guy Opinions: Elvis Costello doesn’t care much for rock music these days. The 67-year-old pop rock legend — who just released his 32nd studio album, The Boy Named If — said in a recent interview that he thinks modern rock has lost its spark. “I don’t like much rock music,” Costello admitted to Rolling Stone. “I like rock ‘n’ roll. I think if you lose the roll part, a lot of the fun goes out of it.” The “Alison” singer continued: “When people ask me, ‘What’s your favorite record?’ I usually don’t name any electric-guitar records made in the last 30 years because the beat is so square… I like things that float a bit or swing a bit — whether it’s rock ‘n’ roll or actual jazz that swings or even the way Hank Williams records lope.” Advertisement Related Video Costello w...
