So long, Spotify

July 26, 2025, 9:23 PM

It actually took longer than I expected, but after paying a fee to reactivate my Distrokid account, I was able to remove all the music from streaming services – for good this time. I also had to re-register the SongForward domain to get the "lost password" message from SoundCloud, which made it possible to delete everything from that account there. (Total cost: $49.18)

I did leave a few tracks on the main SoundCloud account because they appear to have become popular (relatively speaking, of course). At this point there's no harm in that, though I expect to delete them eventually.

Finally, I finished the template for the revised music site and I'm ready to begin the "wiring" – that is, making all the parts work. I do not expect that to be complicated, but you never know.

This all comes on the heels of having three tracks played so far this year on Minnesota HomeBrew. At this point, if anyone did have further interest from hearing them there, they should be able to find them on my site. But I need to devise a strategy to roll these out on YouTube (perhaps only temporarily) at the same time they are heard on the program. Haven't quite figured this one out yet.

Let the Updates Begin

May 3, 2025, 9:29 PM

Starting the process of updating all of my personal web sites. (I guess I don't have any "business" sites left. How about that?)

This is all a bit of a tangled mess – two sites with my name, one for music, a domain for the podcast, and various other channels and domains that need to be incorporated and, well, tamed. It's going to take a while.

But I have come to one very important decision: I will not be continuing any presence on Spotify or any other streaming services. Basically, I'm not comfortable with the idea of these big companies making money off my music when there is effectively no way for me to make any money through the services. So I've canceled my DistroKid account, and deleted my SoundCloud stuff (well, most of it; a couple things are lingering due to credential issues).

I also decided that I should make my music site look as familiar and comfortable as possible, which actually means making it look like Spotify. I have no ethical issue with that!