Is Taylor Swift's Opalite MV releasing on Spotify and Apple Music a bad news for indie artists and music lovers?

Taylor Swift's Opalite was released exclusively behind a paywall on Spotify and Apple Music. While it's new, it could drastically change the music landscape for both indie artists and users.

Music videos have always been associated with YouTube; it's the norm, but Taylor Swift has a 'bad habit'! On February 5th, when Taylor Nation announced the release of the music video for Opalite, exclusively on Spotify and Apple Music, the internet was ready with their pitchforks and proofs, their receipts and reasons. Greedy for many, and strategic for some, but charts caused it all. As Billboard, a widely renowned premium charting company, changed the way it measures charts, it plunged artists into an onyx night.

In January, Billboard announced that it would prioritise subscription-based streams over advertisement-based streams. In simpler terms, they would consider streams coming from users subscribed to platforms like Spotify and Apple Music over platforms like YouTube. This resulted in bad blood between YouTube and Billboard, with YouTube retaliating by deciding to refrain from submitting any streaming data in the future. For any artist, streams are one major way to measure their success, but this move meant music video streams would no longer be considered, unless they switch platforms.

Also Read:Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl is a love letter to falling head over heels in love and so much more!

Earlier, Harry Stylesreleased the music video for 'Apperture' on 23rd January, which amassed 17 million views, but unfortunately, it won't make a dent in the Billboard Charts. Considering how Taylor's Opalite was released on Spotify and Apple Music before it went live on YouTube, the impact on charts is something fans are looking forward to. Opalite became the most-streamed music video in Spotify history and the most-viewed music video in 24 hours over on Apple Music. The music video wasn't available to users with the free version of Spotify until February 9th, when it was released on YouTube, where it gathered a staggering 5.8 million views.

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No matter how bleak it may look for the industry, Taylor Swift has always managed to take her music to her fans. From bringing her concert film without attaching with a studio to re-releasing her old albums, she's been a pioneer for artists' rights. But here, her actions could leave artists dancing through lightning strikes. As music streaming platforms, Spotify and Apply Music have always provided indie artists a space to present their work, without the need for high-budget music videos to sell their music. Features like daily and weekly playlists curated songs based on the user's taste, introducing them to new music and artists every day. However, with this new update, many well-established artists will be choosing to debut their music videos on these platforms. This might force indie artists to compete with well produced music videos, making it hard for them to enjoy the perks of these platforms like before.

This possible shift to subscription-based platforms also comes at a time when Spotify, along with Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group, is suing Anna's Archive for copyright infringement. Anna's Archive is a pirated site offering music from various eras and genres that is available to stream for free, but is facing a $13 trillion lawsuit.

While we condemn privacy, the ongoing beef between YouTube and Billboard would drastically commercialise listening to music. With users already forced to pay for a decent music listening experience, music videos were something that came free; however, now one needs to be a premium subscriber to watch them.

What Taylor Swift did is something any artist would do; she released the music video on YouTube, 2 days after the official release. It gave her enough time to get her song into the charts while also providing her fans with an option to either pay and watch it or wait for 48 hours to experience it for free. This could be a good solution till the matter between Billboard and YouTube is sorted, but it shouldn't become the norm.

Should music be locked behind a paywall? Let us know in the comments below!

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