What with him selling “virtual cannabis goods” in the metaverse and claiming to run an NFT-loving social media account, Snoop Dogg has been intrigued by the blockchain for quite some time. Now, the rapper has decided to take the plunge and move his work over to blockchain-based streaming service Tune.FM.
Despite currently having nearly 30 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Snoop plans to gradually migrate his entire catalogue over to Tune.FM. “I don’t fuck with Spotify anymore,” he reveals in a Billboard exclusive. “I’m only on Tune.FM.”
The decision comes after a long-spanning dispute with Spotify over royalties. In December 2023, Snoop told the Business United podcast that the payout for hitting a billion streams was ridiculously low. “They sent me some s**t from Spotify where I got a billion streams,” he recalled. “My publisher hit me. I said, ‘Break that down, how much money is that?’ That s**t wasn’t even $45,000.”
In response, a Spotify spokesperson told TMZ that “it’s well documented that a billion streams on Spotify generates millions of dollars to rights holders. It’s unfortunate to hear that Spotify’s payments didn’t make it through to Snoop.”
Musicians are increasingly coming forward claiming they have receives low payouts from Spotify’s. However, the streaming giant claims its royalty payments are fair. “Spotify paid out $10 billion to the music industry last year and has paid out $60 billion all time,” the company told Guitar.com last month.
“Our music subscription competitors haven’t reported their subscriber figures or music industry payouts in years, because they pay far less,” Spotify concluded.
Regardless of Spotify’s claims, Snoop is still jumping ship. His new streaming home Tune.FM is built on a promise that “when a tune gets played, the artist gets paid”.
According to a Tune.FM spokesperson: “Tune.FM operates under non-exclusive licensing agreements, enabling us to unlock new revenue streams for under-monetised catalogues and artist IP on both our streaming platform and marketplace.”
The Web3 streaming platform has its own native cryptocurrency (JAM) which has instant micropayments per second streamed. Once a user signs up, they can spend JAM tokens to stream tracks, invest in artists and earn royalties. Tokens can also gain access to exclusive content.
One such track users can stream is Spaceship Party, Snoop’s first project being streamed exclusively on Tune.FM. The track even features a violin performance from Tune.FM’s founder, Andrew Antar.
Antar and Snoop first crossed paths at the Crypto Ball, a celebration that marked President Donald Trump’s inauguration back in January. It didn’t take much to convince Snoop of the platform’s perks.
“We are thrilled to welcome Snoop Dogg as the face of Tune.FM,” Antar tells Billboard. “Snoop is the OG pioneer who is always on the cutting edge of technology and new ways of doing business. He totally gets it, and we are ready to take on the world together.”
In the future, Billboard reveals that Snoop plans to use Tune.FM to host fan giveaways, including “a private event at his house and VIP prize tiers”.
Head to Snoop Dogg’s Tune.FM page to find out more.
