Is Spotify good for music?

As Spotify's reach continues to grow, musicians and journalists alike have been debating the effects of the streaming economy that the music platform helped create.

Today on Commotion, Elamin Abdelmahmoud speaks with two such people: music journalist Liz Pelly, who just released a new book on this topic, Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Cost of the Perfect Playlist, and musician and music critic Ian Kamau. They discuss the rise of the streaming economy and what it means for the relationship between artists and their fans.

We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player.

Elamin: Ian, I want to talk about the consumer's place in all of this because I think that's important. How much of the struggles that musicians face in the streaming economy actually come down to Spotify versus [consumer choices]? How much of it is on the consumers, do you think?

Ian: The audience for any artist is in a system where they are given choices. And I don't think the choice between the expensive vinyl en masse and streaming services — which have basically every song in the world available to you on your cell phone — is really an honest choice. Some people will choose to buy vinyl and CDs still, if they are produced. But the reality is it's not really a choice. The model has shifted and the paradigm has shifted along with the model, and now we're accustomed. You know, we use cars, we don't ride horses en masse anymore. The technology has moved forward and the audience has followed it. It's not really an honest choice to say that the audience is responsible somehow for that paradigm shift. 

Elamin: Liz, is that where you're at with this? The idea of like, OK, there was a moment when audiences sort of had a choice in how they had to consume their music, and we are now looking at an evolution in technology where there's no way to break out of this format. So how do we make it more fair? Or is it not really on the consumer, is it more on Spotify?

Liz: I would never say that there's no alternative to these systems. But I also think that elsewhere in the world, individual solutions to collective problems often feel really unsatisfying and also fall short. So that's why in my book, I argue both for a series of reforms that could potentially make sharing more fair to listeners. I talk about the importance of general data protection laws. I talk about different ways in which the streaming model might be reimagined to make streaming more fair. Then I also talk about things that artists are doing in their own communities to create alternatives completely outside of the corporate music industry. And I think that both are important. 

Elamin: If I can push you a little bit on that, just to talk about the consumer piece a little bit more. As people are listening to this and they're thinking about the consumption habits that they have when it comes to the music that they listen to, what's one thing that they should rethink or consider again? Because you've done all this research for the book, I see behind you that you've got this entire wall of notes that looks great: what's a place where a consumer can maybe insert a bit more agency if they want to be able to better support their artists, but not through this streaming infrastructure?

Liz: One thing that people should keep in mind is that music is labour. It requires a lot of work. I think that the way in which music has been devalued by the streaming economy and the music business in general — not just streaming, the entire music business today — works in some ways to really invisibilize a lot of the labour that goes into creating music. And there are things that we can do to revalue music, whether it be directly buying music from artists, if you can afford to do so through platforms like Bandcamp or directly from artists at their shows. Going to shows, sharing music you're excited about, participating in alternative networks of sharing and championing the music that is important to you.

You can listen to the full discussion from today's show on CBC Listen or on our podcast, Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud, available wherever you get your podcasts.

Panel produced by Ty Callender.