Our Favorite Rock Legends Are In Trouble And Will Need All The Help They Can Get

Things Are About To Get Ugly…

In case you’re unaware, the popular streaming service Spotify recently removed artists such as R. Kelly and XXXTentacion due to allegations of domestic abuse. Though a relatively controversial decision, it was a move that was well received especially by activist groups such as UltraViolet who are now asking Spotify to take it a step further.

UltraViolet wrote an open letter to Spotify thanking them for ‘taking the important first step’ and asking them to remove more artists with alleged histories of domestic abuse, some of which are some of our favorite rock legends. The letter reads as follows…

To CEO Daniel Ek:

Thank you for taking the important first step of removing infamous abusers R. Kelly and XXXTentacion from your official playlists. Your action demonstrates that Spotify is following the lead of Black women who demanded that these two men, who have sexually and physically abused women for years, not be promoted and celebrated.

On behalf of our one million members, UltraViolet applauds and supports this choice.

Yet as you know, these two men are not the only abusers on your platform. We implore you to take a deeper look at the artists you promote.

Every time a famous individual continues to be glorified despite allegations of abuse, we wrongly perpetuate silence by showing survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence that there will be no consequences for abuse. That has a cultural effect far beyond one individual artist.

While nowhere near a comprehensive list, here are several abusers or groups of abusers who continue to profit from your promotion:

● Chris Brown

● The Red Hot Chili Peppers

● Nelly

● Eminem

● Don Henley of The Eagles

● Steven Tyler of Aerosmith

● Tekashi 6ix9ine

● Ted Nugent

We publish this as an open letter because we hope other platforms like iTunes, Google Play Music, and Pandora will continue to follow your lead.

Thank you again for your thoughtful consideration.

Sincerely,

Shaunna Thomas, Executive Director, UltraViolet  

Clearly, whether you believe these allegations or not, this is not a good look for these musicians and it certainly goes without saying that they are going to need all the help they can get before this turns ugly, which it likely will…