Photo: WENN
Billy Bragg has issued a statement to apologises over comments he made accusing Taylor Swift of 'selling her soul to Google' after removing all of her music from Spotify.
Swift attracted a mixed reaction from critics and the music world when removing her entire catalogue from the streaming service - stating that it was not financially rewarding enough for artists and that refused to surrender her 'life's work to an experiment'.
Bragg hit out at the 'Shake It' star, slamming her decision as a 'corporate power play'.
Now, Bragg has made an apology to her - and asked all media outlets to avoid the crap pun 'Bragg makes Swift apology'. This one's for you, Billy.
Read his full statement below:
"I want to apologise to Taylor Swift for accusing her of selling her soul to Google. I have learned that her music will not now be available on the new YouTube Music Key service, which launched this week. This is despite a number of credible sources stating in the last seven days that it would be – including yesterday’s CMU newsletter.
"My criticism was based on the fact that Swift’s back catalogue was the central feature of a demonstration of the Music Key services given to journalists in London last week, as outlined in the article below. In response to specific questions about Swift’s music, journalists were assured that her back catalogue would be available on the service, including the free tier. This fact was reported in the Observer article that I linked to on my first post on this subject.
"Learning that Google were using Swift to promote Music Key gave me the impression that her music was going to be front and centre of their launch, the implication being that her Spotify boycott was a corporate power play, rather than an attempt by an artist to make the point that music has value.
"I now realise that I was mistaken in this assumption and wish to apologise to Ms Swift for questioning her motives.
The fact that our music is widely available for free on the internet is a problem that all artists struggle with. While so much material is instantly accessible on YouTube, subscription streaming services will always find it a challenge to build enough users to make music viable for artists, who at the moment seem to be at the end of the queue for remuneration.
"The time will surely come when content creators have to band together to challenge deals done between rights holders and service providers, details of which are kept from artists and their representatives. If Ms Swift is going to lead that fight for transparency, she will have my full support.
"I would like to add that I will be boycotting the first media outlet to use the headline ‘Bragg makes Swift apology’."
Meanwhile, Swift's full UK dates are below. For tickets and more information, visit here
Tue June 23 2015 - GLASGOW SSE Hydro
Wed June 24 2015 - MANCHESTER Arena
Sat June 27 2015 - LONDON Hyde Park
Meanwhile, check out her massive list of world tour dates below.
20 May Bossier City, LA CenturyLink Center
22 May Baton Rouge, LA LSU Tiger Stadium
30 May Detroit, MI Ford Field
2 June Louisville, KY KFC Yum! Center
3 June Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena
6 June Pittsburgh, P
A Heinz Field 8 June Charlotte, NC Time Warner Cable Arena
9 June Raleigh, NC PNC Arena
13 June Philadelphia, PA Lincoln Financial Field
20 June Cologne, Germany Lanxess Arena
21 June Amsterdam, The Netherlands Ziggo Dome
23 June Glasgow, UK The SSE Hydro
24 June Manchester, UK Arena
27 June London, UK British Summertime Hyde Park
6 July Ottawa, ON Canadian Tire Centre
7 July Montreal, QC Bell Centre
11 July East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium
13 July Washington, DC Nationals Park
18 July Chicago, IL Soldier Field
24 July Foxborough, MA Gillette Stadium
25 July Foxborough, MA Gillette Stadium
1 August Vancouver, BC BC Place Stadium
4 August Edmonton, AB Rexall Place
5 August Edmonton, AB Rexall Place
8 August Seattle, WA CenturyLink Field
15 August Santa Clara, CA Levi's Stadium
17 August Glendale, AZ Gila River Arena
18 August Glendale, AZ Gila River Arena
25 August Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
26 August Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
29 August San Diego, CA PETCO Park
4 September Salt Lake City, UT EnergySolutions Arena
5 September Denver, CO Pepsi Center
6 September Denver, CO Pepsi Center
9 September Fargo, ND Fargodome
11 September St. Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center
12 September St. Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center
16 September Indianapolis, IN Bankers Life Fieldhouse
17 September Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
18 September Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
21 September Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
22 September Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
25 September Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
26 September Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
2 October Toronto, ON Rogers Centre
3 October Toronto, ON Rogers Centre
8 October Des Moines, IA Wells Fargo Arena
9 October Omaha, NE CenturyLink Center
10 October Omaha, NE CenturyLink Center
13 October St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
14 October St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
17 October Dallas, TX AT&T Stadium
20 October Lexington, KY Rupp Arena
21 October Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum Complex
24 October Atlanta, GA Georgia Dome
27 October Miami, FL AmericanAirlines Arena
31 October Tampa, FL Raymond James Stadium
