Spotify isn’t my home, but I keep the porch light on. 🚪✨ Here’s why.

Music isn’t “content.” She’s not filler for a feed or background noise for multitasking. She is my lifeblood. She’s the way my dad still sings through me, the way my grandfather’s trumpet still breathes, the way I’ve stitched joy and pain into something that heals.

So when Spotify’s CEO once called music content, I flinched. It felt like someone reducing my entire heart and soul into a commodity. And then came the royalty threshold (no pay unless a song hits 1,000 streams a year) and the headlines about Spotify’s leader investing in military tech. Let’s just say, it doesn’t exactly make me want to pop champagne.

And yet—here I am, still on Spotify. Not because it’s home, but because sometimes you leave the porch light on so people can find their way to where you really live.

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Why I’m still on Spotify

Because people are there. When I released Big Train, my first five days brought 30 streams and 41 followers. That might sound small in the big picture, but to me? That’s 30 times Music moved through someone’s speakers. That’s 41 people choosing to stay connected. That matters.

Spotify isn’t home, but it’s where people pass by. If I want Music to reach hearts, I keep the porch light on so they know where to find me.

Being on Spotify doesn’t mean I co-sign everything about the company or its CEO. It’s messy.

It reminds me of living in America right now. You participate because that’s where life happens — you drive the roads, you use the infrastructure, you share in the community. But you also know your tax dollars don’t only fund what you love (parks, schools, safety nets)… they also go toward things that feel out of alignment. Still, you’re not powerless. You get to redirect energy, speak up, and choose how you engage.

Spotify feels the same to me. Streams create visibility and connection — and they also enrich a system I don’t fully believe in. But I’m not powerless. I can point listeners toward places that feel more like home.

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Where my heart really lives

My true home as an artist isn’t on Spotify. It’s in spaces where support flows directly, where the exchange feels soulful and real:

• My website (where I share lyrics, videos, and stories straight from my heart)

• Merch and music bundles (because I love sending you something you can hold)

• Bandcamp (where you can buy my songs, or even pay more if you feel moved)

These are the places where you and I can connect without a middleman turning Music into “content.”

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If Spotify is where you listen, I welcome you there with open arms. Every play matters, and I celebrate those milestones with joy. But if you want to support me in a way that feels like a hug instead of a handshake, come find me on my website or Bandcamp. That’s where the energy circulates back into more songs, more stories, more Music.

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What it comes down to is this:

I’m here to carry Music’s light.

Spotify helps people find the door.

My website and Bandcamp are where I live.

And no matter how you arrive, I’m grateful you’re here—

listening with me in the glow.