More than 160 Basque bands They have removed their music from the music platform in protest of its owner’s investments in arms companies.
More than 160 musical groups from the Basque Country, along with around 650 artists, have launched a boycott against Spotify, removing their songs from the platform. The decision arises as a result of the investments of the company’s owner, Daniel Ek, in a firm linked to the development of military technology (including drones), news that for many musicians represented a point of no return.
The initiative, grouped under the name Musikariak Palestinerekinwas recently unveiled at the Katakrak bookstore in Iruña-Pamplona. Its promoters recalled that more than two years have passed since Israel intensified the occupation of Palestine, a scenario that, they denounce, has become a normalized background despite the violence it implies. In this context, Daniel Ek’s economic commitment to the arms industry reinforced in the group the need to position itself.
The movement began discreetly at the beginning of August, promoted by members of a couple of groups. As the weeks went by, they organized a core group and expanded the network through personal contacts, informal meetings and a constant flow of calls and emails. Although they acknowledge that doubts and fears arose, they also affirm that they found enthusiasm and support, elements that have given meaning to the creation of a collaborative structure. From seven people in the summer they have grown to hundreds in just a few months.
Even so, they point out that their growth has not ended and encourage those who want to join to do so without reservation. They emphasize that the group does not intend to establish itself as a moral judge or point out colleagues in the sector, since each musical project has its own circumstances. Their objective, they say, is to show that, in the same way that the platform barely pays attention to local music, those who make up the Basque scene can decide to do without it. They recognize that the economic impact of their gesture will be limited given the magnitude of the undertaking, but they insist that the strength of the boycott lies in the political and cultural message it transmits. In these months, the music of bands like Glaukoma, Nakar, Kortatu, Negu Gorriak, The Fury, Mursego either Jon Maiahas been removed from the platform, reinforcing the idea that Basque artistic creation maintains a tradition of social commitment and international solidarity.
Spotify, for its part, has responded by ensuring that the arms company in question operates independently and that the platform has no relationship with the conflict in Gaza. However, for those who promote Musikariak Palestinerekinthe debate is not reduced to legal issues: they consider that the borders between civil and military technology are increasingly blurred and that a cultural company must assume the ethical implications of the investments of its top manager.
