Barry Manilow on Spotify rumor: 'I don't know where it started'

Barry Manilow addressed a rumor posted to Twitter on Friday morning that he's pulling his music from the streaming platform Spotify.

"I don’t know where it started, but it didn’t start with me or anyone who represents me," Manilow told The Desert Sun in a statement.

Activist and author Amy Siskind said in a post that Manilow, a Palm Springs resident, is joining singer-songwriter Neil Young, whose music was pulled on Wednesday following his claims Spotify spreads COVID-19 vaccine misinformation.

"@barrymanilow I can’t smile without you, and fortunately was already streaming you this month on Apple," Siskind wrote on Friday morning.

Siskind later deleted her post and explained, "I tweeted this earlier after seeing it around Twitter yesterday."

Young wrote an open letter on Monday to his manager Frank Gironda and Tom Corson, co-chairman and chief operating officer of Warner Bros. Records, demanding his classic collection of songs be pulled due to pandemic disinformation, specifically calling out Spotify's popular podcast host Joe Rogan as the one spreading it.

"I want you to let Spotify know immediately TODAY that I want all my music off their platform,” Young said. "They can have (Joe) Rogan or Young. Not both."

Two days later, Spotify obliged.

"We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom for creators," a Spotify spokesperson said in a statement to USA TODAY Wednesday. "We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon."

The Spotify spokesperson said the platform has detailed content policies in place and has removed more than 20,000 COVID-related podcast episodes since the start of the pandemic.

Spotify's statement made no specific mention about Rogan's podcast nor did it specify the volume of Young's music that is being removed from the platform.

In Young's letter, the hall of fame rocker said he wanted his music off because "Spotify is spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them."

Rogan, host of "The Joe Rogan Experience," who tested positive for COVID-19 in September, had downplayed the need for mass vaccines for large events like comedy shows. Launched in 2009, Rogan's podcast is among the most popular in the U.S. In 2020, Spotify acquired Rogan’s podcast library in a deal reportedly worth more than $100 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Previous reporting by USA TODAY reporter Terry Collins was used for this report.

Desert Sun reporter Brian Blueskye covers arts and entertainment. He can be reached at brian.blueskye@desertsun.com or on Twitter at @bblueskye. Support local news, subscribe to The Desert Sun.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Barry Manilow on Spotify rumor: 'I don't know where it started'