Snoop Dogg Claims He Only Got $45K From 1 Billion Spotify Streams, Spotify Responds.
Rap icon Snoop Dogg is joining a rising wave of big-name artists who are calling out the streaming revenue system led by platforms like Spotify. The debate kicked off in December 2023 when Snoop shared his disappointment about the meager payouts artists get, even with huge streaming figures.
During a press event, Snoop couldn't believe how little cash he actually made, despite racking up over a billion streams on the service.
"Can someone explain to me how you can get a billion streams and not get a million dollars?"
Snoop revealed that his payout from Spotify for hitting that milestone was just $45,000, which is surprisingly low given the potential earnings from a billion streams.
Jump to early 2025, and Snoop decided to make a move. He shared that he was ditching Spotify for Tune.FM, a Web3 streaming service that claims to offer fairer and clearer payments for artists. In an interview with Billboard, he laid out his position.
"I don't f** with Spotify anymore. I'm only on Tune.FM."
Snoop's decision marked a change in how he views streaming, but Spotify quickly pushed back against his assertion regarding the $45K payment.
Spotify Responds: "Millions Go to Rights Holders"
After Snoop's remarks blew up online, Spotify fired back, saying his statement was a bit off. A rep for the streaming service shared their thoughts with TMZ.
"$45K for a billion streams? 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."
Spotify hinted at Snoop's ownership of Death Row Records, suggesting that with control over his classic catalog, he could potentially earn a bigger slice of the streaming revenue.
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"Snoop's a legend and, hopefully, now that he owns Death Row Records, he's seeing more of that money."
The main point to understand here is "rights holders," which usually refers to record labels, publishers, and distributors, rather than the artists themselves. Even big names like Snoop Dogg might only pocket a small portion of the total streaming revenue if their contracts lean in favor of the labels.
How Much Does Spotify Actually Pay?
To give you an idea, Spotify typically pays between $0.003 and $0.005 per stream. So, if a song hits a billion streams, that could mean around $3 million to $5 million in total revenue for all rights holders.
But how much an artist actually gets depends on their contract and how royalties are set up:
If an artist is with a label, that label usually takes the lion's share of the revenue, often keeping 80% or more before the artist sees any money.
Artists on traditional contracts might only see 15-20% of what the label makes, which means from a billion streams, they could end up with around $600,000 to $1 million—before any deductions.
And if there are multiple artists, producers, or songwriters involved, that payout gets divided even more.
Snoop's assertion of only getting $45,000 seems pretty low when you look at the numbers. One reason for this could be that he was talking about his publishing royalties, which are significantly less than what he would earn from master recording royalties. Songwriters have been vocal about the meager payouts from streaming, and Snoop might have been highlighting that part of his income.
Tune.FM: A Fresh Take on Streaming?
Feeling let down by the current music industry, Snoop has teamed up with Tune.FM, a Web3 music platform that uses blockchain tech. This platform claims to boost artist earnings by cutting out the middlemen, like major labels, and utilizing crypto micropayments.
How does Tune.FM stack up against Spotify?
Artists get to keep 90% of the streaming revenue, while traditional label deals usually offer only 15-20%.
Payments are made instantly and transparently through blockchain, instead of waiting for monthly cycles.
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The platform also provides extra income opportunities through NFT sales and fan-driven rewards.
Tune.FM states that they pay about $0.01 for every minute streamed, so a 4-minute track would earn $0.04 per play—ten times more than what Spotify typically offers. However, since Tune.FM is still a smaller player, it doesn't have nearly as many listeners as Spotify's 600+ million.
The Bigger Picture: Artists vs. Streaming Platforms
Snoop Dogg's recent clash with Spotify sheds light on a bigger issue: a lot of artists feel shortchanged when it comes to streaming revenue. The problem isn't just about how much Spotify pays; it's more about the music industry's royalty system, which tends to benefit record labels more than the artists themselves.
Snoop isn't the first to voice concerns about streaming services:
- Taylor Swift took her music off Spotify back in 2014 for similar reasons.
- Pharrell Williams only made $2,700 from 43 million streams of "Happy" on Pandora.
- Kevin Kadish, who co-wrote "All About That Bass," earned just $5,679 from 178 million streams.
These cases show that the payment model in the music industry is pretty broken, especially for artists who don’t own their own masters.
Who's Right in the Snoop-Spotify Feud?
Spotify's point that a billion streams can bring in millions is true, but Snoop's frustration makes sense. If he really only got $45K, it’s probably because of outdated record deals or tricky royalty arrangements, not just Spotify's fault.
However, his shift to Tune.FM shows there's a rising interest in alternative platforms where artists can have more say. Whether blockchain-based streaming services can actually rival big players like Spotify is still up in the air, but one thing's for sure: the conversation about streaming royalties is far from over.
