Taylor Swift pulling music from Spotify was pointless and had no obvious benefits, says CEO
Taylor Swift’s decision to pull her back catalogue from music streaming site Spotify had no obvious benefits, says that company’s CEO.
Daniel Elk has admitted that removing her music from the site just meant that her fans flocked to YouTube rather than purchasing her music directly.
Speaking to Billboard, Elk said: “Her YouTube streams went through the roof.
“What that tells me is the audience that was listening to Taylor Swift on Spotify went on YouTube to do it instead. Then you may ask, ‘Well, what was the benefit of it?’”
The company boss admitted that he was surprised when the 25-year-old announced that her decision last year, but didn’t want to start a feud.
He told the magazine: “I was a little surprised... But at the same time, I knew I was dealing with America’s darling.”
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Last year Swift said: “Music is art, and art is important and rare. Important, rare things are valuable. Valuable things should be paid for.
“It’s my opinion that music should not be free, and my prediction is that individual artists and their labels will someday decide what an album’s price point is. I hope they don’t underestimate themselves or undervalue their art.”
Spotify is one of the most popular music websites in the world, with more than 10 million paying subscribers worldwide.
At the time of Swift’s back catalogue removal, more than 25 per cent of subscribers had streamed one of her songs.
