Earlier this week, Spotify launched a new “hate content and hateful conduct” policy that resulted in a playlist ban for R. Kelly and XXXTentacion. Now, the controversial artists are fighting back against the streaming company and even 50 Cent involved himself to defend them.
R. Kelly then retweeted 50's post and thanked him for his support.
Kelly's rep also made a statement regarding the decision to take him off Spotify. “We appreciate Spotify for continuing to make R. Kelly’s songs accessible to millions of people, although it will stop listing his songs on its official playlists. Spotify is adopting a new ‘Hate Content & Hateful Conduct’ policy. R. Kelly never has been accused of hate, and the lyrics he writes express love and desire.
“Mr. Kelly for 30 years has sung songs about his love and passion for women. He is innocent of the false and hurtful accusations in the ongoing smear campaign against him, waged by enemies seeking a payoff. He never has been convicted of a crime, nor does he have any pending criminal charges against him.”
A rep for XXXTentacion, in response to the new policy, asked in a statement whether Spotify intended to remove the music of stars like David Bowie, James Brown, Jimmy Page, Michael Jackson, Miles Davis and Dr. Dre, among others, from its playlists as well.
In response, Spotify has said artists will be delisted on a case-by-base basis.
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