James Blunt ‘Threatens’ To Release New Music Onto Spotify, Joins Protest Vs. Joe Rogan Covid-19 Claims

Which one could be the larger concern for Spotify? No music on its platform from Neil Younger and Joni Mitchell. Or extra music from James Blunt?

As I coated for Forbes on January 14, over 270 medical doctors, scientists and different well being professionals have signed an “Open Letter to Spotify” stating that “all through the Covid-19 pandemic, Joe Rogan has repeatedly unfold deceptive and false claims on his podcast, upsetting mistrust in science and drugs.” This petition referred to as “on Spotify to instantly set up a transparent and public coverage to reasonable misinformation on its platform.” After all, today, it’s not clear what number of politicians and companies may very well take heed to actual scientists and science.

Effectively, this previous week, distinguished members of the music trade determined to take motion and lend their voices to assist science. First, Younger requested Spotify to take away his songs from their platform as a result of the Spotify podcast The Joe Rogan Expertise was “spreading false details about vaccines,” as Zachary Snowdon Smith reported for Forbes.

Then, on January 28, Mitchell posted the following statement on her website: “I’ve determined to take away all my music from Spotify. Irresponsible persons are spreading lies which can be costing folks their lives. I stand in solidarity with Neil Younger and the worldwide scientific and medical communities on this problem.” Her website also now includes a copy of the “Open Letter to Spotify.”

However the true bombshell dropped on January 29, coming within the type of the next Blunt warning:

Uh oh.

As you possibly can see, the British artist included the hashtag #youwerebeautiful, which undoubtedly referred to his hit tune, “You are Lovely.” When you recall, in 2005, radio stations performed this tune till your ears bled. The tune first turned a giant hit within the U.Ok. after which unfold all through Europe. Quickly the tune made its solution to the U.S. the place it reached the Prime 10 within the U.S. for the next 4 classes: Grownup Modern Music, Sizzling Grownup Prime 40 Tracks, Grownup Album Various, and “sure, we get it, she’s lovely.”

Whereas some songs could also be earworms, this one was an ear snake. There was nothing like sitting in a public restroom stall and taking a look at the bathroom paper roll whereas the lyrics, “You are lovely, it is true,” had been ringing in your head. In 2006, the tune reached the summit of the whole Billboard Sizzling 100, changing into the primary British tune in 9 years to attain primary standing since Elton John’s “Candle within the Wind 1997.” That very same 12 months Bizarre Al Yankovic launched a parody of the tune entitled “You are Pitiful.” And you already know your tune has hit the massive time when Bizarre Al has determined to parody it. Sure, the tune has caught round like peanut butter up one’s nostril.

It appears to be like like “You are Lovely” could possibly be the cornerstone of his upcoming “Best Hit Tour,” as Blunt indicated on Twitter:

Discover his use of the phrase “hit” with out an “s.” When you had been to imagine one other tweet from Blunt, social distancing will not be downside on his tour:

After all, there may be the possibility that Blunt could have been joking about his risk to launch new music on Spotify and his suggestion that he could have just one fan. Chances are high Blunt has not less than two followers, assuming that his spouse likes his music as effectively. So don’t maintain your breath anticipating the discharge of “You’re Nonetheless Lovely”, “Really, You’re Not That Lovely”, “The Lighting Could Have Been Off”, “Trigger I’ve obtained a plan, nevertheless it has taken over a decade and a half to execute” or another new Blunt tune on to the Spotify platform in retaliation. Blunt does have a historical past of self-deprecating humor on Twitter that’s attracted over 2.1 million followers on the social media platform. Plus, he has had different songs and albums and has executed a variety of different issues. For instance, he’s helped elevate cash for Assist for Heroes, which assists wounded British servicemen, Médecins Sans Frontières, and varied environmental causes. Furthermore, “You’re Lovely” isn’t the worst tune on the planet. In reality, it may be fairly the other. It’s obtained a catchy melody. The lyrics converse to anybody who’s suffered by means of unrequited love. And the next video answered the important thing query that stored thousands and thousands questioning what precisely does Blunt maintain in his pockets:

There’s something lovely about musicians and different artists utilizing their platforms to voice assist for actual science and scientists, it’s true. In the course of the pandemic with a lot misinformation flying round and lots of fake consultants spouting off unfounded Covid-19 claims, actual Covid-19 consultants have discovered their faces in a crowded place. They usually haven’t identified what to do. It may be fairly irritating seeing folks die and undergo unnecessarily after they don’t comply with evidence-based Covid-19 precautions simply because others are spouting misinformation about Covid-19.

So in gentle of this, many did really feel that Blunt’s tweet was good, so to talk. It acquired responses corresponding to the next:

After all, some responses pointed to Rogan’s reputation corresponding to the next from an nameless Twitter account:

Umm. Isn’t saying “hit Google and educate myself” a bit like saying, “I’m going to see what everyone seems to be saying about one thing after which select the most well-liked factor or the factor I can discover first?” And another responses from nameless Twitter accounts claimed that Rogan has been bringing in “world main consultants” on to his podcast:

As you possibly can see, responses to those responses questioned whether or not the friends on The Joe Rogan Expertise have really been respectable “world main consultants” versus folks espousing a sure perspective.

It stays to be seen how Spotify will reply to the request “to instantly set up a transparent and public coverage to reasonable misinformation on its platform” and the statements from Younger, Mitchell, and Blunt. There’s a giant distinction between offering leisure and well being data. When you had been to sing about some scorching particular person smiling at you on a subway when it wasn’t actually a smile however a glance of disgust, nobody will actually get damage by such data. Nonetheless, telling folks to not take a lethal virus as critically as they need to or keep away from evidence-based Covid-19 precautions, might find yourself hurting lots of people. It’s true.