Tracy Chapman reveals why she refuses to stream music
Tracy Chapman has revealed the real reason why she refuses to use streaming services to listen to music.
The folk singer recently gave a rare interview to The New York Times, in which she discussed her disdain for the current formats of the music industry.
She said: “I do listen to music still. I don’t listen to as much as I used to, and I’m maybe going to date myself now, or someone’s going to call me a Luddite, but I don’t stream music.”
However, Chapman also said: “I only buy music in physical form. Artists get paid when you actually buy a CD or the vinyl. That’s important to me. So to some extent, it limits what I listen to, because it’s a physical commitment of going out into the world and finding things, but I still do go out.”
The ‘Fast Car’ singer reflected on her seismic hit, which made her the first Black solo singer to score a country number one when Luke Combs covered the song in 2023, leading to Chapman performing publicly for the first time in nine years with him at the 2024 Grammys.
Speaking of the experience, she said it was “pretty awesome” for “all the young women in all their variety, doing their things.”
Asked if she was referring to current female staples in the pop canon like Chappell Roan, Chapman responded: “Yes, and Charli XCX. It’s not music that I would make, but I appreciate that we’re in this moment where there’s a path for artists like that, and they can even have success.”
Chapman’s last album, Our Bright Future, was released in 2008.
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