“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@andrewleland @jonhicks Terrifying. Those big services are more inhumane than ever.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
So Spotify is a platform for mainstream-music? I’m not surprised.
In Germany we say: The devil shits on the highest heap.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks fewer
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks Could you share your source please? The article linked doesn't seem to even mention Spotify (unless it was edited?)
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So Spotify is a platform for mainstream-music? I’m not surprised.
In Germany we say: The devil shits on the highest heap.
@_RyekDarkener_ @jonhicks that's why the white house is expanding
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks "But we have to have copyright for the sake of the creators!"
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks Steal everything. Go to gigs.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks BandCamp
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks Not going to be a popular comment here because it’s so cool to hate on Apple, but Apple Music pays about double to artists compared with Spotify and doesn’t have a free tier (so *all* listens are paid). Still better to support your favourite artists directly but Apple Music is clearly better than Spotify in this regard. Always has been.
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@jonhicks Steal everything. Go to gigs.
@devolute or… buy physical media AND go to gigs AND stream as well?
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@devolute or… buy physical media AND go to gigs AND stream as well?
@jonhicks Music is too important to rely on someone else's trickles down from a cloud.
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@obrhoff @nevyn the core problem of Spotify has always been there - that they took advantage of an industry worried about Napster. I’ve always justified using it because I buy music as well, but not with decisions like adverts for ICE and investing in Helsing AI .
My work with them was quite brief in the end - I think my icons only lasted a year before they replaced them with thin iOS 7 style ones!
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks I am a musician but I never make any money. I quit being a Spotify customer when I discovered their CEO was financially supporting military AI from Germany or something evil like that. That money should have gone to the musicians. Now my music is on Bandcamp.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks @myrobotfriend Ugh. I thought independence would screw the music industry but then the tech bros took over the music industry and showed them how to *really* screw, nickel and dime artists and the audience.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks this is unbelievable. Spotify had/has the best recommendation “algorithm” I’ve ever experienced. But they seem to be artist hostile.
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“In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.”
https://musically.com/2026/01/15/5-1tn-annual-music-streams-but-120-5m-tracks-had-10-or-fewer/
@jonhicks This is not unexpected, I guess there are plenty of scammers around that just spam Spotify with keyword stuffing or whatever.
What's a lot more interesting to me is how many *listens* have been demonetized. That's not such a "tech is evil" statistic though, so the media better not report it I guess.
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