Spotify takes Donald Trump to brunch

If you were wondering whether all the corporations were planning to fall in line with the new administration, the answer seems to be yes. Spotify is the latest tech giant to cozy up to the new president. According to Bloomberg, the streaming service hosted a brunch featuring crab claws, caviar, and an espresso martini conveyor belt for Trump the day before his inauguration. The brunch, meant to celebrate “the power of podcasts in this election,” was also attended by the usual suspects, including Ben Shapiro, Tim Pool, and conservative country singer Riley Green. (It doesn’t seem like golden boy Joe Rogan was there, but Bloomberg mentions that his interview with Trump was lionized in a speech at the event as the most listened to podcast episode on Spotify by a “long shot.”) 

In a statement, Spotify claimed that it “has long hosted events in Washington, D.C., and other capitals worldwide, bringing together political leaders, media figures, and industry peers from across the political spectrum. These engagements are business as usual.” (In a separate article, Wired pointed out that Google and YouTube hosted similar receptions for podcasters and creators during inauguration weekend.)

What isn’t business as usual—or really shouldn’t be, despite the company’s claims—is the fact that Spotify also donated $150,000 to Trump’s inaugural fund, as confirmed to Pitchfork. (What especially isn’t business as usual is that that number is almost comforting compared to the $1 million each from companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Meta, and OpenAI.) “The donation aims to continue to expand our presence in Washington, D.C., while furthering the goals of our platform and our creators,” the company said in a statement to Swedish news outlet Dagens Nyheter (translated to English by Pitchfork). “It is in line with the work we do in capitals around the world to advance our policy issues, regardless of who is in power.” All that, and they still can’t find enough money in the coffers to pay songwriters and other artists fairly for their work.