Jordan Peterson ditches Neil Young in defense of Joe Rogan

On Monday, Canadian rock and roll legend Neil Young announced in a letter to his record label that he was giving Spotify an ultimatum; his music or Joe Rogan's podcast.

Following the news, fellow Canadian Jordan Peterson responded to Young, coming out in defense of Joe Rogan.

"I enjoyed listening to you Neil," Peterson said. "You'll be missed."

Peterson was not alone in his siding with Rogan. Many criticized Young for his suggestion that the host of the most popular podcast in the world should be silenced.

In his letter, Young demanded that Spotify remove his music in protest over the streaming platform's decision to continue hosting Joe Rogan's podcast, which he says is "...spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them."

"I want you to let Spotify know immediately TODAY that I want all my music off their platform, he wrote. "They can have Rogan or Young. Not both."

Citing the Joe Rogan Experience's immense reach, Young said that "Spotify has a responsibility to mitigate the spread of misinformation on its platform."

Young has long been a vocal critic of "the establishment." In 1970, he released "Ohio" in response to the government-sanctioned violence inflicted upon students during the Kent State Massacre.

Then in 2006 Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young reunited for their "Freedom of Speech tour," where they passionately bashed the US government. Earlier that year Young had released "Let's Impeach the President" in protest against George W. Bush.

While Neil Young remains one of Canada's most celebrated singers, the majority of his listeners likely enjoy his music via cassettes, vinyl, and CD's, not Spotify, whose main demographic is far younger.

"Today I learned Neil Young is apparently on Spotify," one user wrote.

As Rolling Stone reports, in 2019 Young said he wanted to remove his music from Spotify due to what he deemed to be poor audio quality, but opted to remain because "that's where people get music."

Spotify has not yet responded to Young's ultimatum; at the time of writing both The Joe Rogan Experience and Young's music are still up.