The boycott against R. Kelly appears to be gaining traction, as it was announced today that popular music streaming service, Spotify, will be pulling R. Kelly's music from all of its official playlists as a part of their new anti-hate policy.
According to Billboard, Spotify will no longer promote Kelly's music in any way, or include him in any of their curated or algorithmic playlists such as "Rap Caviar," "Discover Weekly," and "New Music Friday." Kelly's music will still be available on the platform, but now users will have to search for his music specifically in order to hear it.
"We don’t censor content because of an artist’s or creator’s behavior, but we want our editorial decisions -- what we choose to program -- to reflect our values," Spotify tells Billboard. "When an artist or creator does something that is especially harmful or hateful, it may affect the ways we work with or support that artist or creator."
This follows a mounting series of testimonies and allegations about the singer's behavior, including allegations that he runs a "sex cult," where the women under his control have to follow a series of severe rules, including having to ask for Kelly's permission before they're even allowed to use the bathroom and constantly addressing him as "Daddy."
The new policy comes as Spotify makes steps to try and address hateful content on its platform. As of now Kelly is the only artist that Spotify acknowledged would be affected by these changes, but there could be more on the way.
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