In a big development, Beyoncé has launched her album Lemonade on streaming services like Spotify, Google Play Music, Apple Music and more. This is big news considering that the album had been available for streaming only on Tidal for three years. It was on April 23 in 2016 that the artist had surprise-dropped the record, starting a new trend in the world of hip-hop music.
One can’t say that they didn’t see this coming though. Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s album Everything Is Love from last year lost its Tidal exclusivity only a few days after release. And moreover, her latest live album, Homecoming was released on all major streaming services on day one. But Lemonade still happens to be one of her biggest achievements, and its arrival on other platforms only spells good news for those who didn’t own a Tidal subscription.
The reason for Beyonce and Jay-Z preference towards Tidal is of course their partial ownership of the streaming platform. Its unique selling point is that it combines lossless high-definition audio and music videos with exclusive content. The service was started in 2014, and in 2015, it was purchased by Jay-Z’s Project Panther Bidco. At that time, it was promised to be a haven for artists since its higher subscription fees would result in higher royalties to the artists and songwriters.
However, there were several big criticisms that came Tidal’s way after its launch. Prime among them was its high price of $20 per month, which many believed would ultimately lead to piracy. Another major complaint was that not many people possess the speakers and headphones needed to belt out high-definition audio, which makes the music sound exactly the same to them.
Beyonce hasn’t stated the reason why Lemonade has finally been brought to other platforms, but then again, the artist is known for her tight-lipped approach. In one of her songs called Nice, she did write, “If I gave two f**ks about streaming numbers, would have put Lemonade up on Spotify.” Guess she really does give those two f**ks now.
Bottom line, Lemonade, which is one of the best R&B albums of recent times, can now be streamed on cheaper services like Spotify, Apple Music and more.
