Spotify Denies Snoop Dogg’s Billion Streams Claim

Earlier this month, Snoop Dogg, one of the biggest names in the hip-hop industry, officially disassociated himself from Spotify.

The rapper, who has more than 30 million streams monthly, expressed his discontent with the platform’s artist payments.

He revealed that he received less than $45,000 in compensation despite accumulating over a billion streams.

“It’s an exciting time, but streaming got to get their s**ttogether ’cause I don’t understand how you get paid off of that shit,” Snoop said

“Can someone explain to me how you can get a billion streams and not get a million dollars? That s**t don’t make sense to me,” he added.

The West Coast rapper has decided to endorse Web3-based music streaming provider Tune.FM., making his decision known publicly in a recent statement to Billboard.

Tune.FM is a streaming service that uses blockchain technology to allow musicians greater control over their revenue.

Reports have it that Snoop met with the founder of Tune.FM, Andrew Antar, at the Crypto Ball on January’s presidential inaugural weekend and subsequently became the face of Tune.FM.

The announcement of Snoop Dogg’s partnership with Tune.FM coincided with the release of his most recent song, “Spaceship Party.”

The rapper is starting to move his discography to the new platform, and ”Spaceship Party” is the first of many singles.

He has also hinted that the catalog of “Death Row Records,” the iconic label he now owns, may also transfer to Tune.FM, further reinforcing his commitment to the new streaming model.

Spotify’s Response to Snoop’s Comment

On the day Snoop’s partnership with Tune.FM was launched, a Spotify representative made a response to Snoop’s assertions in an interview with TMZ Hip Hop.

On Spotify, artists generally receive $0.003-$0.005 per stream, with cuts going to songwriters, record label executives, Spotify, and others who worked on the song.

“We can’t speak to endorsement deals for Web3 companies, but $45K for a billion streams? It’s well documented that a billion streams on Spotify generate millions of dollars to rights holders,” the representative said to TMZ.

“It’s unfortunate to hear that Spotify’s payments didn’t make it through to Snoop. Snoop’s a legend, and hopefully, now that he owns Death Row Records, he’s seeing more of that money,” the representative concluded.

The criticism of Snoop Dogg toward the platform adds to the ongoing debate about fair pay in the music industry.