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What Next: TBD | Tech, power, and the future - Why Bands Are Leaving Spotify

Slate Daily Feed

Slate

Business, News, Society & Culture

3.91.1K Ratings

🗓️ 19 October 2025

⏱️ 23 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Paying a fraction of a penny per stream and diminishing the value of music were bad enough for Xiu Xiu, but when Spotify owner Daniel Ek announced an investment in a German defense contractor, they decided it was time to take the music back.


Guest: Jamie Stewart, musician in the band Xiu Xiu.


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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

After a magical visit to the kingdom of caring, there's been a spooky mashup in Happy Meal,

0:05.0

and the Care Bears are all jumbled up. Join the Care Bears on their most spell-binding adventure yet.

0:10.0

Some fun, some food, it's all inside this Happy Meal.

0:13.0

Until 4th of November from 11 AM, includes one pre-selected book or toy,

0:17.0

while stocks last. Subject to availability, fair ordering policy applies.

0:20.0

Why don't you? book or toy. While stocks last, subject to availability, fair ordering policy applies.

0:26.4

Why don't you just introduce yourself?

0:28.1

Tell me who you are and what you do.

0:30.6

Ahoy, my name is Jamie Stewart.

0:32.8

I play in the band Shushu.

0:35.9

Oh, Bunny Rabbit. John just thought the bummer of habit. Yeah. One of the coolest things I get to talk about technological change.

0:45.8

One of the coolest things I get to do on this show is talk to people whose lives and work butt up against technological change.

0:55.2

One place where that's happening a lot is the music industry.

0:59.3

How long have you been making music with Shushu?

1:03.5

That makes me want to throw up every time I say it, but 22 years.

1:08.7

Yes, I feel the same.

1:12.4

How's the music business changed in that period of time?

1:15.5

Because those 22 years are like a really significant couple of decades in the way music reaches

1:25.0

listeners' ears.

1:26.8

Yeah, that is true.

1:28.6

It's been two decades of musicians basically at war with the greed of tech companies.

1:35.7

Jamie and I are roughly the same age.

...

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