05/11/2025
Why is everyone so obsessed with Spotify when we already know the damage it causes—and what could fix it?
I believe it’s because, to their eyes and ears, Spotify is the illusion of legitimacy.
It’s the digital stage where every artist wants to be seen — even if it means performing for an empty room while the house takes all the profits.
The obsession isn’t about sound; it’s about status*.*
"To be on Spotify" is to exist within the algorithmic hierarchy of visibility, even if that existence pays less than a cup of coffee and demands countless poor political compromises.
The problem is structural: streaming turned music into background noise and artists into data points.
The solution isn’t another platform — it’s the birth of countless micro-communities, each led by the artist who creates it.
Artists must rebuild the ecosystem from below: through community-based streaming, direct-to-fan models, decentralized royalties, or micro-patronage systems.
Spotify feeds the dream of exposure. A real revolution would feed the artist.
Cheers,
~DJ Amapola
