Neil Young Heads to Amazon

Neil Young and his music are going to Amazon.

And he’s doing it for… sound quality?

In case you haven’t heard, Young recently gave an ultimatum to Spotify saying the streaming service had to choose either him or popular podcaster Joe Rogan. Spotify chose Rogan, who many have criticized for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 on his platform.

Others have since followed Young, including singer Joni Mitchell. In the wake of these decisions, Spotify has lost potentially billions.

Spotify has since announced it will add a content warning ahead of podcasts like Rogan’s.

And Rogan himself recently posted a video explaining his side of the story, noting that his show is “weird” in that he doesn’t always know what he’s going to say when the conversations start. Many on social media have criticized this, noting he is paid tens of millions of dollars for his show and ignorance is not an excuse.

Either way, in a post on the Neil Young Archives Twitter page, the artist (or his team) posted, “All folks looking for my music can easily head to AMAZON MUSIC and click here https://bit.ly/NYA_AmazonMusic – all new listeners will get four months free.

“Amazon has been leading the pack in bringing Hi-Res audio to the masses, and it’s a great place to enjoy my entire catalog in the highest quality available. Thanks also to Apple Music (I LOVE APPLE) and Qobuz for sticking with my High Res music.

“My music is also available in the highest quality at http://neilyoungarchives.com love earth be well neil”

In the wake of this decision, some fans and media outlets have criticized the legendary singer since Amazon isn’t exactly the beacon of responsibility when it comes to COVID-19 practices, including under-reporting infections amongst workers.

Also, in the wake of Young’s decision, Sirius XM has restarted Young’s own channel on the satellite radio platform. The channel had been dormant of late, but now with all the recent publicity, Sirius XM has breathed new life into the channel.

Who knows what might be next….?

Photo by DH Lovelife / Warner Records