Spotify removes Neil Young music after he hits out at platform over 'Joe Rogan Covid misinformation'

Spotify has begun removing music by Neil Young after he called for the streaming platform to choose between him and podcaster Joe Rogan.

In an open letter to the music streaming platform, Young accused them of Covid misinformation, saying: "They can have Rogan or Young. Not both."

In another statement posted to his website he called the music streaming giant "the home of life-threatening Covid misinformation", adding: "Lies being sold for money."

Spotify has said it “regrets” musician Neil Young’s decision to remove his music from the platform over the spread of coronavirus misinformation.

Spotify has said it “regrets” musician Neil Young’s decision to remove his music from the platform over the spread of coronavirus misinformation.

The streaming giant said it tried to achieve balance and had removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to Covid and hoped to welcome Young back soon.

It comes following reports that Young requested his content be removed from Spotify due to its hosting of the Joe Rogan podcast, which has been known to air vaccine-sceptical views.

Spotify said it aimed to balance “both safety for listeners and freedom for creators”.

In a statement they 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 for creators.

“We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to Covid since the start of the pandemic.

“We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon”.

The Joe Rogan Experience was acquired by Spotify in 2020 for more than 100 million dollars.

Rogan, who contracted Covid in September, has previously attracted controversy for suggesting the young and healthy should not get vaccinated.