WASHINGTON — Don’t mess with Tay.
Days after Spotify criticized the “Shake It Off” singer for not making her new album, 1989, immediately available for streaming, Taylor Swift has removed all of her songs and albums from the music service.
Last week, Spotify had told Mashable that “due to a decision by the artist,” Swift’s 1989 wasn’t available for streaming.
“There are over 40 million music fans on Spotify and Taylor Swift has nearly 2 million active followers…who will be disappointed by this decision,” a Spotify spokesperson said.
Monday, Swift’s four previous albums were removed from Spotify.
Now, Spotify’s statement takes a different tone:
“We love Taylor Swift, and our more than 40 million users love her even more — nearly 16 million of them have played her songs in the the last 30 days,” says the statement, according to Mashable. “We hope she’ll change her mind and join us in building a new music economy that works for everyone.”
Earlier this year, Swift had told the Wall Street Journal music should not be free, and predicted individual artists and their labels would eventually stop underestimating themselves or undervaluing their art.
This is not the first time Swift has withheld her music from streaming services, and apparently the strategy hasn’t hurt her.
Her previous album, Red, sold more than 1 million copies in its first week, and didn’t appear on Spotify for several months after release.
