On February 28, k-pop fans woke up to the nightmare of seeing many of their favourite Korean artists disappear from the music streaming app Spotify. A long list of big names such IU, G I-DLE, Zico, Gfriend, Apink, Taeyeon, VIXX, Seventeen, MonstaX, Sunmi, Astro Mamamoo among others had to unexpectedly bid farewell to their global fans due to licensing issues. Here's what happened behind the scene.

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Why did Spotify remove Kpop songs? Spotify and Kakao M release their official statements

As of now, both Spotify and Kakao M that are responsible for the licensing deals are reluctant on taking charge of the situation. On March 1st, Billboard received an official statement from Spotify that revealed that their original licensing agreement expired and their failure to reach an agreement on a new and altered global deal led to the unfortunate event. Earlier this year, Spotify finally launched in South Korea, becoming a direct contender to Kakao M affiliated streaming platform, Melon. This may or may not have been the reason for the sudden disagreement in terms and conditions. Regardless, this has led fans and critics to theorise the reality.

Just a theory: I don't have direct insight on the situation, but Spotify just launching in Korea means direct competition to Kakao M, who owns Melon, the largest streaming platform in Korea. I feel negotiations between the two halted and their deal expired by the end of the month
— Jeff Benjamin (@Jeff__Benjamin) February 28, 2021

do you think kakao is planning to launch a global streaming service, maybe an extension of melon or another version of melon? i don't understand why they want to make access to korean music more limited; not a really good way to gain profit is it? https://t.co/A5WuqezMOR
— bianca⁷ is back to blue side (@anpantaegi) February 28, 2021

Aware of the assumptions that will follow up post the disappearance, Spotify clarified well-ahead that the licensing agreement is unrelated to their launch in South Korea. Spotify continued in their statement to Billboard, "It is our hope that this disruption will be temporary and we can resolve the situation soon. We remain committed to working with local rights holders including KakaoM, to help grow the Korean music market and overall streaming eco-system together."

Alternatively, Kakao M penned a divergent narrative on the situation that pointed fingers at Spotify instead. Their statement to Soompi read, "Due to Spotify's policy that they must proceed with the domestic and global contracts at the same time, our global contract has currently expired. We are currently continuing our negotiations about the supply of music." Meanwhile, artists and people from the fraternity who found themselves at the receiving end of the two streaming giants' alleged feud had a few things to say, too.

Apparently a disagreement between our distributor Kakao M & Spotify has made our new album Epik High Is Here unavailable globally against our will. Regardless of who is at fault, why is it always the artists and the fans that suffer when businesses place greed over art?
— 에픽하이 타블로 | Tablo of Epik High (@blobyblo) February 28, 2021

Epik High’s albums, “Epik High Is Here” and “Sleepless in __________” are both unavailable on Spotify globally. This is heartbreaking as a manager, friend and fan. There needs to be a solution ASAP.
— Eddie Nam (@eddienam) February 28, 2021

Source tells me artists and labels distributed by Kakao M are actively connecting with their other distribution partners (some agencies have different distributors for different acts)

P NATION's HyunA and Jessi have already done this, I see their music back on Spotify (USA)
— Jeff Benjamin (@Jeff__Benjamin) March 1, 2021

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Why did Spotify remove Kpop songs? Kakao M and Spotify release official statements

Why did Spotify remove Kpop songs? Songs from artists like IU, Mamamoo, Monsta-X have disappeared from the streaming giant, here's why.

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