Taylor vs. Goliath: Only Swift Could Take On Apple

Taylor Swift spoke up, and Apple couldn't shake it off.

Yesterday Swift published a post on Tumblr threatening to pull her latest album from Apple Music. Her explanation for keeping mega-hit 1989 off Apple's new streaming service: the company wasn't going to compensate music writers, producers, and artists during the three-month free trial period. The star, who could easily endure the pay cut, decided to speak for the 99% of the industry who couldn't. She wrote:

These are not the complaints of a spoiled, petulant child. These are the echoed sentiments of every artist, writer and producer in my social circles who are afraid to speak up publicly because we admire and respect Apple so much. We simply do not respect this particular call.

She's right on all counts. Swift is not a lone voice in this battle against Apple's policy—she's just the latest and loudest. Beggars Group, which houses indie labels like 4AD, Matador, and Rough Trade, released a statement about their decision to steer clear of Apple's contract: "Whilst we understand the logic of their proposal and their aim to introduce a subscription-only service, we struggle to see why rights owners and artists should bear this aspect of Apple’s customer acquisition costs." (It's worth mentioning that the best iTunes album seller in history—Adele's 21—belongs to Beggars Group label XL Recordings.) Another indie label exec told Rolling Stone, "A lot of independent labels are of the same mind – that it's kind of a raw deal." Even the American Association of Independent Music expressed some skepticism: "Please do not feel rushed to sign Apple’s current offer." 

And yet it was Taylor Swift who got Apple to back down.

Eddy Cue responded in a series of tweets:

I haven't always agreed with Swift's perspective on the music industry. When she pulled her catalog from Spotify, for example, I thought (and still think) she made the wrong call—one that's the equivalent of an ostrich sticking its head in the sand. As David Holmes of Pando Daily said, "Taylor Swift is an anomaly. I think you could count on one hand the number of artists that could pull this off and remain popular – as digital download sales are in freefall."

Similarly, her Wall Street Journal op-ed was, as she herself admitted, enthusiastically optimistic. In typical Taylor lingo, she wrote:

The value of an album is, and will continue to be, based on the amount of heart and soul an artist has bled into a body of work, and the financial value that artists (and their labels) place on their music when it goes out into the marketplace.

That's fine to say when your latest album hit $4M in sales in just twelve weeks. An EP uploaded for free on Bandcamp has, in my opinion, the same amount of value/heart/soul/etc as 1989. Her op-ed and Spotify decision idealize a revenue model and demonize streaming, without acknowledging that her experience in the industry is the exception rather than the rule.

With her stance on Apple, though, I'm in complete agreement. And, beyond that, it has solidified her role as the indie ambassador—a role that, because of her place at the top of the music food chain, she certainly doesn't have to take. She's speaking out simply because it's the right thing to do.

And she has a star power few others can claim. Thom Yorke of Radiohead has been famously vocal about Spotify, calling it "the last desperate fart of a dying corpse." He's made ripples in the public conversation, sure, but certainly hasn't made a dent in Spotify adoption. Most recently, the Tidal crew attempted to differentiate themselves as a platform for artists, by artists. The purportedly altruistic message got lost, though: it was overshadowed by attempts to earn a profit. Swift, on the other hand, had nothing much to gain by making a statement against Apple, whom she calls "one of my best partners in selling music." As Bob Lefsetz points out, 1989 has already past its peak in terms of sales. 

What Swift gains from this move is much more valuable than album sales. To quote Lefsetz: "Efforts like Taylor Swift's are career-defining moments of credibility that are trumpeted for eons, they're what cements artists' careers. It's not only hits, it's identity. Records come and go, people remain. If you stand for something, you're the hook that catches the velcro loop, and we're all loops waiting to be caught."