Sylvan Esso Remove Music from Spotify & Release New Song WDID

With a fresh track called “WDID,” Sylvan Esso just announced they’re pulling all their music from Spotify.

Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn dropped the new single under Psychic Hotline, their own label, and they made it clear in a statement that they’re done with Spotify, saying they can’t keep their art in a place that “directly funds war machines,” along with other problems they see with the platform. You can hear “WDID” below.

Recently, more and more artists have been saying goodbye to Spotify, with Deerhoof kicking off the trend in June and others like Hotline TNT, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and Xiu Xiu following along. Some are leaving because Daniel Ek, who started Spotify, has put money into a weapons company called Helsing through his investment firm. And in a twist, Spotify also just shared that Ek is changing jobs, moving from CEO to executive chair.

Fans think it’s pretty wild how many bands are taking a stand like this.

As we prepare to release new music, we have to decide what we want to be a part of and what we don’t. To that end, with Sylvan Esso being on our own label for the first time, we have decided to remove our music from Spotify. While no solution is perfect, we simply can’t continue to put our life’s work in a store that, in addition to all its other glaring flaws, directly funds war machines.

reaching towards the world we all deserve, even though we are not in it yet

Back in 2022, Sylvan Esso put out No Rules Sandy, but now they’re rolling out “WDID” on 12″ vinyl through Psychic Hotline on January 9, with “Keep On” as the B-side.