Presto music is another streaming service with even better pay per stream.
Per the company: "Since launching our streaming service in 2023, we’ve been stating that the combination of paying rightsholders per second (rather than ‘per play’) AND focussing purely on classical and jazz repertoire means that we’re often paying out up to 10x more than other major streaming services. "
Good Job! My husband quit Spotify a few months ago. So proud. Now we need to quit Gmail/Google. If you are able to do it, please write up what you did! I switched to Duck Duck Go for searches but my email and mapping and website are still trapped . Sigh!
I'm also working on de-Googling since the big G has my main email address and I also have a lot of photos backed up to Google Drive. I'm working on pulling those off onto an external hard drive so that I can still access them if needed, but I rarely look at the vast majority. Maybe then Google Drive will stop shaking me down for payment with the threat of cutting off my emails. As for email, I looked into alternatives for some time and opened up an account with Mailfence, which I know also has a broader suite of office tools. But I can't decide whether to reserve the new address for important things and leave the junk for Gmail, or switch the bulk of my email volume to Mailfence and only keep Gmail for select things. Decisions, decisions...
Proton can replace Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Authenticator. They've built a basic Google Docs replacement which is good enough for online collaboration, and also offer a password manager and a VPN. It's not free, but it's not expensive either. Their CEO's politics are potentially shitty, so you might want to look into that before signing up.
Oh yeah, and they have a photo backup thingy built into their iOS and Android Proton Drive app that can sync your entire iPhoto library to make it accessible on both platforms.
You could do map quest. Still haven’t made Gulf of Mexico Gulf of America on the app, like Google did immediately. As for email, I have to keep my Google email only for work. I only use it on my work computer, and took it off my phone. I never use the Google search. Husband also got rid of Spotify.
Yeah I really like this. I'm here for practical ways to even partially demachine our lives. Too puritanical and no one will see it through. This guide is right in the sweet spot.
Why use any of these services at all? We know they are fraught with exploitation. The old systems still work and they are free. I don't know how I have managed w/o music streaming services. /s This is an example of how people are pressured into using stuff that they don't really need or even want. Maybe I'm old school, and as a former DJ (college and community radio) and someone who ordered music for a library, I have never lacked access to music. As a long time festival and live music attendee I get introduced to lots of great music. I also listen to Eclectic 24 on KCRM out of Santa Monica as well as the local community radio station. It may be time to rethink all the ways we have lot the algorithm into our lives and ask if it is worth it.
Isn't it crazy that you are upset at Spotify's CEO (a Swedishman) for stepping up to fund Europe's defense against an imperial Russian invasion with millions dead and counting? Do you support Vladimir Putin's fascism?
This is very helpful I’m in midst of this too. The apparent running of ads for ICE on Spotify is last straw for me. I’m leaning towards Tidal due to paying artists more and what I’ve been told of improved sound quality. Don’t love your points about their ownership but let’s be honest they all suck and at the moment I just have to leave Spotify for all of the reasons noted!
I really appreciate you putting this guide together. I "broke up" with Spotify in terms of cancelling my subscription there some years ago (2021 or 2022?), but I confess I still use it as a free user and just sit through the ads. My move away from Spotify was towards owning more of my music, and so to that end I've been building up my music library on my PC - something I was really big on until Spotify started to seduce me with its charms and ease of music discovery in the late 2010s - but I still use it to listen to music at work.
I had assumed that when it comes to streaming music, all the platforms were pretty much as bad (and had assumed that, aside from giants like Apple Music and Amazon Music, they wouldn't have the same selection) so it's nice to discover I'm wrong on that front. (I've been using Bandcamp for many years and enjoy Bandcamp Radio, but the artists there do tend to be more niche). I will definitely be checking out Qobuz forthwith.
As a sidenote on alternatives, I also started to use Soundcloud more here and there, as it has some mash-up tracks that I enjoy - something that I'd previously gone to YouTube for, but YouTube is an ass that won't let me play anything in the background on my phone unless I give it some money. I don't know how well they compensate artists, though - anyone have an idea?
As someone who is more than willing to pay to own songs but who also wants to avoid the clutches of Big Tech where possible, my biggest frustration since breaking up with Spotify has been the lack of online music providers with a wide catalogue outside of Apple or Amazon. I want to buy from artists directly, but I find that they mostly sell physical media through their online shops (Lil Nas X was a notable exception, and one I wasn't too surprised about). Failing that, I'd love to find an online music vendor that has a reasonable selection and doesn't belong to a big tech giant. If anyone has any recommendations, they'd be gratefully received.
Thanks as always Brian. Glad to learn about Qobuz (as a performing songwriter and music consumer). Spotify indeed sucks for those of us in music who measure our fan base in the hundreds. For anyone curious about my music side, explore my tunes on Bandcamp: https://revkin.bandcamp.com
I never got into the Spotify ecosystem as I loved Pandora from the very beginning since it was set up by musicologists and I have learned interesting things about my own musical interests because of that taxonomy. I know that it was bought by satellite radio years ago and I don't honestly know if it is more fair to artists. Do you happen to know, Brian? (LG).
Presto music is another streaming service with even better pay per stream.
Per the company: "Since launching our streaming service in 2023, we’ve been stating that the combination of paying rightsholders per second (rather than ‘per play’) AND focussing purely on classical and jazz repertoire means that we’re often paying out up to 10x more than other major streaming services. "
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/articles/6209--announcement-fair-play-how-much-do-different-streaming-services-pay
https://www.prestomusic.com/about
Good Job! My husband quit Spotify a few months ago. So proud. Now we need to quit Gmail/Google. If you are able to do it, please write up what you did! I switched to Duck Duck Go for searches but my email and mapping and website are still trapped . Sigh!
I'm also working on de-Googling since the big G has my main email address and I also have a lot of photos backed up to Google Drive. I'm working on pulling those off onto an external hard drive so that I can still access them if needed, but I rarely look at the vast majority. Maybe then Google Drive will stop shaking me down for payment with the threat of cutting off my emails. As for email, I looked into alternatives for some time and opened up an account with Mailfence, which I know also has a broader suite of office tools. But I can't decide whether to reserve the new address for important things and leave the junk for Gmail, or switch the bulk of my email volume to Mailfence and only keep Gmail for select things. Decisions, decisions...
Proton can replace Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Authenticator. They've built a basic Google Docs replacement which is good enough for online collaboration, and also offer a password manager and a VPN. It's not free, but it's not expensive either. Their CEO's politics are potentially shitty, so you might want to look into that before signing up.
Oh yeah, and they have a photo backup thingy built into their iOS and Android Proton Drive app that can sync your entire iPhoto library to make it accessible on both platforms.
You could do map quest. Still haven’t made Gulf of Mexico Gulf of America on the app, like Google did immediately. As for email, I have to keep my Google email only for work. I only use it on my work computer, and took it off my phone. I never use the Google search. Husband also got rid of Spotify.
Yeah I really like this. I'm here for practical ways to even partially demachine our lives. Too puritanical and no one will see it through. This guide is right in the sweet spot.
I really like Qobuz. The sound quality is outstanding and I am liking their suggestions. I too enjoyed The Replacements Remix.
Why use any of these services at all? We know they are fraught with exploitation. The old systems still work and they are free. I don't know how I have managed w/o music streaming services. /s This is an example of how people are pressured into using stuff that they don't really need or even want. Maybe I'm old school, and as a former DJ (college and community radio) and someone who ordered music for a library, I have never lacked access to music. As a long time festival and live music attendee I get introduced to lots of great music. I also listen to Eclectic 24 on KCRM out of Santa Monica as well as the local community radio station. It may be time to rethink all the ways we have lot the algorithm into our lives and ask if it is worth it.
Love Qobuz. It's almost like the people who run it actually like music!
Isn't it crazy that you are upset at Spotify's CEO (a Swedishman) for stepping up to fund Europe's defense against an imperial Russian invasion with millions dead and counting? Do you support Vladimir Putin's fascism?
This is very helpful I’m in midst of this too. The apparent running of ads for ICE on Spotify is last straw for me. I’m leaning towards Tidal due to paying artists more and what I’ve been told of improved sound quality. Don’t love your points about their ownership but let’s be honest they all suck and at the moment I just have to leave Spotify for all of the reasons noted!
I really appreciate you putting this guide together. I "broke up" with Spotify in terms of cancelling my subscription there some years ago (2021 or 2022?), but I confess I still use it as a free user and just sit through the ads. My move away from Spotify was towards owning more of my music, and so to that end I've been building up my music library on my PC - something I was really big on until Spotify started to seduce me with its charms and ease of music discovery in the late 2010s - but I still use it to listen to music at work.
I had assumed that when it comes to streaming music, all the platforms were pretty much as bad (and had assumed that, aside from giants like Apple Music and Amazon Music, they wouldn't have the same selection) so it's nice to discover I'm wrong on that front. (I've been using Bandcamp for many years and enjoy Bandcamp Radio, but the artists there do tend to be more niche). I will definitely be checking out Qobuz forthwith.
As a sidenote on alternatives, I also started to use Soundcloud more here and there, as it has some mash-up tracks that I enjoy - something that I'd previously gone to YouTube for, but YouTube is an ass that won't let me play anything in the background on my phone unless I give it some money. I don't know how well they compensate artists, though - anyone have an idea?
As someone who is more than willing to pay to own songs but who also wants to avoid the clutches of Big Tech where possible, my biggest frustration since breaking up with Spotify has been the lack of online music providers with a wide catalogue outside of Apple or Amazon. I want to buy from artists directly, but I find that they mostly sell physical media through their online shops (Lil Nas X was a notable exception, and one I wasn't too surprised about). Failing that, I'd love to find an online music vendor that has a reasonable selection and doesn't belong to a big tech giant. If anyone has any recommendations, they'd be gratefully received.
Thanks as always Brian. Glad to learn about Qobuz (as a performing songwriter and music consumer). Spotify indeed sucks for those of us in music who measure our fan base in the hundreds. For anyone curious about my music side, explore my tunes on Bandcamp: https://revkin.bandcamp.com
I never got into the Spotify ecosystem as I loved Pandora from the very beginning since it was set up by musicologists and I have learned interesting things about my own musical interests because of that taxonomy. I know that it was bought by satellite radio years ago and I don't honestly know if it is more fair to artists. Do you happen to know, Brian? (LG).