It seems like Joe Rogan is all set to stick with Spotify for some time and has no plans to take leave of the platform any time in the near future. His podcast, Joe Rogan Experience, has attracted a lot of attention for all the right and wrong reasons. Despite the controversy, Rogan’s podcast continues to stream on Spotify. In a recent Q&A on Tuesday, after an intimate stand-up set in Austin, Texas, Rogan made it clear that his podcast will continue to be streamed on Spotify and that he is not planning to leave Spotify any time soon. The news was reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
The What and Why
Joe Rogan’s controversial podcast has managed to attract a lot of attention over the past few months. Recently his take on Covid-19 vaccination was pegged as misinformation that had the potential to put people in danger. It also raised questions regarding individual freedom and how to allow individual freedom by keeping in mind the necessity to regulate misinformation that can often be a dangerous influence on people. In addition to the Covid-19 misinformation issue, Rogan’s podcast also came under the radar of scrutiny for its racist slurs. Following the incident, Spotify had taken down almost 113 episodes of the show, after apologizing for the offensive content. However, a good majority are still not happy with the fact that Spotify continues to stream Rogan’s podcast.
On Tuesday, a fan asked Rogan if he was planning to take his show to some other platform. The answer was a definite No.” No, Spotify has hung in with me, inexplicably. Let’s see what happens,” was Rogan’s response to the question.
Several other artists on Spotify took leave of the platform since they were rather offended by the fact that the company was allowing the show to remain on the platform despite the long chain of controversies. It seems like Spotify and Rogan have a relationship that is carved in stone. Why else would Rogan turn down a $100 million offer from Rumble to move his podcast to their platform?
“How about you bring all your shows to Rumble, both old and new, with no censorship, for 100 million bucks river four years? This is our chance to save the world. And yes, this is totally legit.” This was the pitch sent by CEO Chris Pavlovski on Twitter. As convincing as it was, it failed to hit a chord with Rogan who turned down the offer without a second thought. Seems like Rogan is not really in the mood to change the world.
