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Spotify is fucking evil. And they are genuinely just the tip of the iceberg. I would even go as far to say that subscription based services, no matter the cause, are (mostly) a scam. We are not paying for access to the arts, as the artists themselves barely see any financial impact - instead we pay for convenience. The convenience to consume any given piece of media at any time in a finely curated and algorithmically optimised manner. And honestly, after mindlessly consuming for a few years I felt myself falling out of love with the artforms that are music, film etc. because any sense of discovery and excitement has been stripped from the experiencing of said arts. It also pissed me off that this supposed "access to all media that has ever been made" is a sham too, especially when it comes to services like Netflix where you would genuinely have to be subscribed to a plethora of services to even just get access to a handful of major films.
A problem I am seeing with all of this is that we are surrendering our own taste, our own curiosity and our pen spirit of discovery for convenience. Tell me, when was the last time you genuinely discovered something "naturally"? When I felt like hadn’t in a long time, I quit all of my streaming services and reverted back to physical media completely. This inconvenience that comes with it genuinely makes my garden bloom. Ever since I have been more attentive, have a great understanding of my music library (very beneficial as a DJ) and just enjoy the experience of music and moving pictures so much more. We truly CANNOT let machines even take over our process of taste building which in turn is a form of character building just for the illusion of convenience. Before we know it any joy will be stripped from it entirely.
This was supposed to be a rant on how I think mp3 players are cool as shit but it derailed, my apologies. If you are inspired or interested I am very glad to help anyone get rid of their music and film rent and actually own your own taste again. There are many ways to build it from the ground up, even with little or no money to invest in it at all! Its a little act of rebellion against a system that will suck dry any meaning of the arts if we don’t fight it.
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XEROX
I've never jumped on the Spotify train!
I hated it not having all the music I liked, then I hated the idea on having to pay to listen to music then later on I heard that people can't even choose to SKIP the music? without the paywall?? That's THE function when you listen to music.. And people still use Spotify!!! I have been using YouTube my whole life to listen to music, from my parents playing it on the computer's speaker, to me first pirating music on my mini LG phone to work.
XEROX
I've never jumped on the Spotify train!
I hated it not having all the music I liked, then I hated the idea on having to pay to listen to music then later on I heard that people can't even choose to SKIP the music? without the paywall?? That's THE function when you listen to music.. And people still use Spotify!!! I have been using YouTube my whole life to listen to music, from my parents playing it on the computer's speaker, to me first pirating music on my mini LG phone to work.
XEROX
I've never jumped on the Spotify train!
I hated it not having all the music I liked, then I hated the idea on having to pay to listen to music then later on I heard that people can't even choose to SKIP the music? without the paywall?? That's THE function when you listen to music.. And people still use Spotify!!! I have been using YouTube my whole life to listen to music, from my parents playing it on the computer's speaker, to me first pirating music on my mini LG phone to work.
Vanni
You're completely right
I deleted my Spotify account and am going to buy an mp3 player
Cryogenette_
nah, Embrace Piracy, fuck over corpos
⛧°. ⋆𓌹*♰Greta♰*𓌺⋆. °⛧
couldn't agree more! In the last few years I have been collecting physical media again. In the last months I've ripping and burning cds and putting them on my old ipod. One thing I really like to do is making a cd mix of the setlists from the concerts have been to lately. For two of my freinds' bdays I made them cd mixes it's been so fun! This new year I really wanna cut back on my phone usage.
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨lily୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
ugh yes yes YES!!! this is exactly what I've been saying, cant wait to convert to mp3 ugh istgs
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨lily୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
ugh yes yes YES!!! this is exactly what I've been saying, cant wait to convert to mp3 ugh istgs
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨lily୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
ugh yes yes YES!!! this is exactly what I've been saying, cant wait to convert to mp3 ugh istgs
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨lily୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
ugh yes yes YES!!! this is exactly what I've been saying, cant wait to convert to mp3 ugh istgs
keonus
no ur real as fuck for this. i just reverted back to physical media and its genuinely one of the only things making me happy rn. being able to own the things i love physically is so nice and genuinely becoming crucial in this day and age. everything cannot be owned solely by the corporations. owning the art you love is the only surefire way to make sure that it doesnt disappear. i just got an ipod mini and flash modded it and its the best thing ever.
xXx_m.a.k.k.0_xXx
type shitt
Isssiii
On that wave w you mane. Glad I switched.
amir
this is so true. i switched from spotify to qobuz recently while i think about a more permanent solution for my music on the go. I have a growing CD collection (and just got a boombox for christmas!) but it is less curated and more CDs that i picked up at the thrift or library sales because I thought they looked cool. what have you been listening to recently?
Jude
i so agree, i understand the feeling of being drained by things that are supposed to ignite more sparks, but though its unfair to the artists themselves, it still helps them reach farther distances. i really love music and i'm really passionate about it as a form of expression and communication, but most of the songs that i listen to are from Nordic countries, without spotify i probably wouldve never gotten into metal the i have right now. i feel like yes for a change of pace i completely support esp with artists youre acc interested in hell yeah go get those cds (i recommend discogs) but its hard for people outside of countries that are heavily involved with music to get access to a broader range of artists. i think streaming apps are best for discovery.
thank you for your comment jude!! i totally agree with your sentiment that streaming is good for some things, especially discovery! this goes for all of the comments tbh, they added a good bit of context to this rant of mine so im grateful gshshs 🙏 at the end the "fault" is NEVER with the consumer if the product is shit. the bas idea to make music accessible isn’t something bad, it should be that way without it being evil
by 𓆩𝖈𝖗𝖔𝖜𓆪; ; Report
You’re so right unfortunately 3 I want to get rid of Spotify soo bad I just listen to new music so often it like would be so hard for me to listen to as much music as I do and I feel so guilty all the time. I am trying to buy more physical media and support small bands!!!
by gabby; ; Report
filomena kestrel serenji
Leaving your music taste to be dictated by algorithms is a sad consequence of how the internet evolved over time. When the metric is 'keeping people on the service as long as possible', this is the result. I want to get unstuck too. I'm slowly getting things to reduce the number of functions I use my phone for. Digicam, instax, physical planner... maybe music soon.
I'm looking to get a modified ipod to put my music on :-)
I have a record player at home and I hope to get a combination cassette/cd player and radio too.
Radio also doesn't let you choose your own music, but at the very least it doesn't try to feed you more of the stuff you already like.
you are on a good path pal!! ownership of our attention and our taste is vital i fear
by 𓆩𝖈𝖗𝖔𝖜𓆪; ; Report
Romeo Rucha
I fully agree that Spotify is evil, but... was it really better when music wasn't available online? Hell no. Poor kids in small towns didn't even have a chance to discover anything that wasn't played on the radio. (And most parts of the world weren't lucky enough to have their John Peel.) It's much better to have a choice. There are a few GOOD services (Bandcamp, Mirlo, Ampwall etc.) that aren't subscription based and don't manipulate users with algorithms. They also let musicians bypass gatekeepers and receive some money directly from their audience.
This is the exact comment I was going to make. I grew up with almost no music around me. It wasn’t until I got an a steamer where I was able to explore what little music I did have around and more. Music wasn’t, and still isn’t, a big part of my family life so I’m very thankful for streamers. HOWEVER I do agree with OP, streamers are a scam for artist and listeners lol
by galla; ; Report
honestly yes! thank you too for adding to my rant, i totally agree with your sentiment too. its just sooo frustrating that something that CAN and perhaps SHOULD be good is so evil
by 𓆩𝖈𝖗𝖔𝖜𓆪; ; Report