Spotify just started a “do not play” list — and it’s already getting static about who should and shouldn’t be on it.
The Swedish music streamer on Thursday announced a clampdown on artists with “harmful” or “hateful” behavior — and promptly yanked R&B star R. Kelly and chart-topping rapper XXXTentacion from its massively popular playlists.
Spotify said it would stop “actively promoting” their music. The restrictions come amid a growing number of accusations that Kelly ran a violent “sex cult.”
The 20-year-old XXXTentacion, meanwhile, has been accused of aggravated battery of a pregnant woman and witness tampering.
The Spotify move drew praise from numerous fans — a great many of whom quickly demanded that other artists be banned, including R&B singer Chris Brown, who was still on Spotify playlists on Thursday despite his 2009 assault of Rihanna, which left her bruised and bleeding.
On Wednesday, Brown got slapped with a fresh lawsuit from lawyer Gloria Allred on behalf of a woman who, according to court papers, was raped repeatedly by a Brown friend in Brown’s home. A lawyer for Brown told TMZ the suit is a “shakedown” and that his client had nothing to do with any alleged attack.
Meanwhile, three more R. Kelly accusers have come forward in the past week. Two told BuzzFeed News about the singer’s coercive behavior, alleging he controlled what they ate and when they could use the bathroom. A third said she believes her daughter is “brainwashed” by Kelly.
Kelly and XXXTentacion were quick to note on that they’re far from the only artists who have been accused of sexual misconduct and violence. Reps for Kelly accused Spotify of kowtowing to “social-media fads” and “acting based on false and unproven allegations.”
“Spotify promotes numerous other artists who are convicted felons, others who have been arrested on charges of domestic violence and artists who sing lyrics that are violent and anti-women in nature,” Kelly’s management said in a statement. “Kelly falls into none of these categories.”
A spokeswoman for XXXTentacion, meanwhile, ticked off a list of icons who have been accused of sexual assault and abuse — including Michael Jackson, Ozzy Osbourne and Miles Davis.
Under Spotify’s new policy, Kelly and XXXTentacion will no longer be found on popular playlists such as Discover Weekly and RapCaviar.
“When an artist or creator does something that is especially harmful or hateful, it may affect the ways we work with or support that artist or creator,” Spotify said.
“As you can imagine, this is a complicated process with room for debate and disagreement, so we can’t get into an artist by artist discussion,” the music-streamer added.
Rival streaming services Apple Music and Tidal didn’t respond to questions about whether they would enact similar restrictions.
Shares of Spotify rose 5.4 percent on Thursday, to $158.13.