10. Popular Artists Will Withhold Their Music From Streaming Services
It's no secret that artists don't get a ton of money from plays on streaming services like Spotify. In fact, many famous musicians (like Radiohead's Thom Yorke) have been vocal about how streaming services actively strangle the potential for new, less-popular artists to make a living. It's been claimed that around five-hundred thousand listens on Spotify pays around three or four thousand dollars, which amounts to around $0.008 per listen. Sure, that might be an okay amount of money for a world-famous artist with multiple popular tracks raking in millions of listens, but it's next to nothing for everybody else. The kicker? Artists like Adele and Taylor Swift are beginning to realise they don't need it. They're so incredibly popular that they can make vastly more profit by limiting or withholding new releases. Taylor Swift, for example, is exclusively with Apple Music after she fought against them over a period of unpaid royalties. Adele, on the other hand, hasn't put 25 on any streaming services, and it has still sold phenomenally well, breaking all kinds of records and becoming the fastest-selling album of all time in the UK. World-famous artists don't need exposure. What they want is profit. Why limit that when Taylor and Adele have proved success is possible without compromising? Expect to see more artists delaying or withholding new releases from one or all streaming services.
