TAY'S PAYDAY
Staggering 8-figure sum Taylor Swift rakes in from Spotify royalties as tech giant pays out record £7.7bn to artists
Read on for the nine other superstars that have raked in the most in royalties from Spotify last year
SUPERSTAR Taylor Swift saw her music earn over £79.8million last year in royalties from Spotify.
The Shake It Off singer was the streaming platform’s highest earner over the last 12 months — as it paid out a record £7.7billion to artists.
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US singer The Weeknd, who was the second most streamed artist on the platform, earned around £39.8million in royalties.
Wicked’s Ariana Grande is set to have pulled in £30million for her music and Bruno Mars saw his streams rack in £25million.
Taylor had previously pulled her music from the platform in a row over pay.
The amount that artists are paid will depend on their individual record label deals.
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Spotify’s Loud and Clear report stated the number of artists generating royalties between $1,000 (£770) and $10million tripled since 2017.
The payout by Spotify is said to be the largest in music industry history — after it was slammed for taking advantage of artists.
In 2014, Taylor removed her catalogue from Spotify, saying: “It’s my opinion music should not be free.” It was re-added in 2017, the same year her album Reputation came out.
This year, a number of singers boycotted Spotify’s Grammy party, in protest of the royalty policy.
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Spotify said: “We do not pay artists or songwriters directly. We pay rights-holders.
"They then pay artists and songwriters based on their individual agreements.”
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Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, Official Trailer, Disney+
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