MusicGrammy-nominated composers boycott Spotify party for the classMusic authors are dissatisfied with changes in the category’s payments, which resulted in a reduction of almost R$1 billion in 12 monthsBy Editorial Staff

Four of the five composers nominated for the Grammy 2025 Songwriter of the Year will not attend a party hosted by Spotify specifically for this class. Three of them confirmed that the reason for the absence is the changes promoted by the streaming platform in payments to professionals in the area.

They will be outside the event Jessi Alexander (who composed “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma”from Luke Combsfor example), Amy Allen (author of “Espresso”from Sabrina Carpenter), Jessie Jo Dillon (responsible for “10,000 Hours”from Dan + Shay) and Raye (who conceived his own material and wrote with Beyonce). Edgar Barrerathe fifth name in the dispute, was the only one not to speak out.

Amy Allen and Jesse Jo Dillon told billboard that changes to Spotify’s compensation for songwriters led to the decision, while Raye restricted herself to stating that she is an advocate for songwriters’ rights. In 2024, the company also included audiobooks and started sharing revenue from reproductions also through book licensing. It is estimated that the measure will cause a reduction in US$150 million (more than R$900 million at the current rate) in paying music creators in the first 12 months.

THE billboardDillon states:

“After some thought, I could not in good conscience support this initiative, given their approach to pooling royalties. It’s great to be honored, but it’s better for me and my entire songwriting community to be paid fairly for our art. There are no songs without composers.”

So far, Spotify has not commented. The pre-Grammy event held by the platform aims to celebrate the nominees for the category, which started in 2023 to enhance the class. In another edition of the party, the competitors took to the stage and sang songs to the audience, mostly made up of professional colleagues.

What Spotify says about the changes

At the time it applied the payment change, a Spotify representative claimed the changes were “consistent” in relation to other platforms and added: “we are paying in different ways based on the terms agreed by streaming services and publishers”. In fact, other companies like Apple and Amazon promote this type of split payment for music and audiobook authors, but as Spotify is the most used streaming, the impact proved to be enormous.

The platform founded in Sweden — and responsible for recording record profits last year — still claims to be paying more to categories in 2024 than it paid in 2023. A report produced by the company itself claims to have distributed almost US$4 billion to publishers, professionals in area and entities in the last two years.

Grammys 2025

The 2025 edition of the Grammys is scheduled to take place on February 2nd, in Los Angeles, in the United States. Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX and Beyonce are among those nominated. Check out the list of main categories: