Spotify is denying a report that Joe Rogan could bolt the streaming giant this year after his contract expires.
Rogan’s future has become a topic of intense speculation particularly in light of the fact that his relationship with Spotify management has “frayed,” according to the news site Semafor.
The news site claimed over the weekend that Rogan could bolt Spotify and take his estimated 11 million listeners with him as the star podcaster’s contract with the Sweden-based audio platform was due to run out later this year.
When reached by The Post, a spokesperson for Spotify disputed Semafor’s reporting, insisting that Rogan’s contract does not expire this year.
A Semafor spokesperson told The Post that the news site updated its original story with a link to a New York Times article from last year which claimed the contract ran for three-and-a-half years “with the possibility of more.”
In late 2020, Rogan, the stand-up comedian and MMA announcer whose podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience” had amassed a loyal following of millions on Google-owned YouTube, signed an exclusive rights deal with Spotify worth a reported $200 million.
Rogan was recruited to Spotify by Courtney Holt, who was head of studios and video. But Holt, who played a key role in signing A-list names for podcasting including Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and Barack and Michelle Obama, left Spotify in April last year.
