Daniel Ek, co-founder of Spotify and one of the company’s most recognizable figures, announced that as of 01.01.2026 he will step down from his role as CEO and take on the position of executive chairman [1], [2]. He will be succeeded by two co-CEOs: Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav Söderström and Chief Business Officer Alex Norström.
The decision comes after the platform faced heavy criticism over Ek’s €600 million investment in a defense technology company, which led several artists to withdraw their music from the platform. Among those who have removed their music are: Massive Attack, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Deerhoof. The company has declined to comment on the artists’ decisions to leave the platform.
Among those who have removed their music are: Massive Attack, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Deerhoof.
Spotify was founded in 2006 and now counts more than 700 million active users and a library of over 100 million songs, 7 million podcasts, and 350,000 audiobooks. In its nearly 20 years of operation, this is not the first time artists have removed their music.
In the past, artists such as Thom Yorke and Taylor Swift had temporarily pulled their music from Spotify in protest over the low compensation artists receive from royalties. Later, in 2022, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell temporarily boycotted the platform over its exclusive deal with Joe Rogan’s podcast, expressing concern that the host was spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines.
