Thom Yorke has notoriously called Spotify “the last desperate fart of a dying corpse,” but that hasn’t stopped him from releasing music on the platform. Earlier this week, the Radiohead frontman cosigned a tweet from Portishead producer Geoff Barrow speaking out about Spotify’s notoriously low paychecks for artists. “Ok quick question for musicians…How many of you have personally made more than £500 from Spotify?” Barrow wrote on twitter. York referenced the statement, adding “I refer you, ladies and gentlemen, to the moments below…without further comment.”
In response to Barrow’s request, industry players like Dan Le Sac and Peanut Butter Wolf spoke to their own experiences with the platform, with Le Sac noting that he made roughly £100 for about 20,000 streams. Peanut Butter Wolf added that it’s “a lot more than YouTube plays but a lot less than record sales.”
Ok quick question for musicians
How many of you have personally made more than £500 from @Spotify— Geoff Barrow (@jetfury) December 27, 2017
i refer you, ladies and gentlemen, to the comments below …. without further comment 🙏😔 https://t.co/rw3mNt9epG
— Thom Yorke (@thomyorke) December 28, 2017
It’s roughly 20000 streams to pay £100 to the rights holder. Make of that what you will.
— dan le sac (@danlesac) December 27, 2017
A lot more than YouTube plays but a lot less than record sales
— Peanut Butter Wolf (@pbwolf) December 27, 2017
While rumors of an initial public offering still surrounding the platform, Spotify announced a $43.4 million settlement with publishers and songwriters earlier this year for copyright infringement, with plans to “enable them to get paid accurately moving forward.” The company also recently acquired Swedish cloud-based recording software Soundtrap for a reported $30 million.