EagleJohnson-9351 copy.jpg
Photo: Eric England

Over the past 15 years, streaming has become a dominant force in the music industry, offering billions of fans instant and low-cost access to a dazzling array of music and offering musicians instant access to a massive potential audience. However, it’s also become increasingly rare to find someone who doesn’t have qualms about the business of streaming.

Between anger about industry-leading platforms like Spotify making meager payouts to the overwhelming majority of musicians to concerns about where subscription dollars go — see the 2025 backlash against Spotify’s then-CEO Daniel Ek investing about $700 million in a startup that develops AI-powered military tech — it feels like there’s a new call for a streaming boycott every few months.

EagleJohnson-9345 copy.jpg