Neil Young is giving the people of Greenland the gift of song \u2014 his songs, that is.<\/b>
\nNeil Young is giving the people of Greenland the gift of song \u2014 his songs, that is.
The veteran rocker announced Tuesday on his blog that he is providing free access to his entire music catalog to residents of Denmark\u2019s semiautonomous territory, whose futures have lately become a point of tension between the U.S. and NATO.
\u201cI hope my music and music films will ease some of the unwarranted stress and threats you are experiencing from our unpopular and hopefully temporary government,\u201d Young wrote. \u201cIt is my sincere wish for you to be able to enjoy all of my music in your beautiful Greenland home, in its highest quality.\u201d
The offer is for a year \u2014 though Young said renewing is possible \u2014 and applicants need to have a Greenland-based cellphone. \u201cThis is an offer of Peace and Love,\u201d he wrote.
The offer is in stark contrast to Young\u2019s recent decision to deny listeners his catalog on the streaming Amazon Music platform, a swipe at its founder, Jeff Bezos, who has supported President Donald Trump.
\u201cAmazon is owned by Jeff Bezos, a billionaire backer of the president,\u201d Young wrote last week. \u201cThe president\u2019s international policies and his support of ICE make it impossible for me to ignore his actions. If you feel as I do, I strongly recommend that you do not use Amazon.\u201d
A representative for Amazon Music didn\u2019t immediately respond for comment. Young\u2019s manager also didn\u2019t reply to questions.
Young has long sparred with streaming platforms, like when he pulled his music from Spotify in protest of podcaster Joe Rogan\u2019s episodes on COVID-19 vaccines. Young later relented and his music was added back.
Young, whose hits include \u201cRockin\u2019 in the Free World\u201d and \u201cHeart of Gold,\u201d has never been a huge fan of Spotify. At his insistence, much of his music was removed from the platform for several months beginning in 2015 because of his concerns about audio quality. But his music is there, as it is on Apple Music.<\/p>\n