Prices for Neil Young’s complete catalog range from around $25 to $100 a year but the rock star has decided to gift all of it for free to the people of Greenland, in response to Donald Trump’s threats against the nation.
Canadian-American rock star Neil Young is offering his entire music catalogue to the people of Greenland.
The year's free access to his archives is done in response to Donald Trump’s persistent threats to annex the country and with the hope that it will "ease some of the unwarranted stress and threats" they are receiving from the Trump administration.
In an update on his official website, Young said: “I’m honoured to give a free year’s access to neilyoungarchives.com to all of our friends in Greenland. I hope my music and music films will ease some of the unwarranted stress and threats you are experiencing from our unpopular and hopefully temporary government.”
He continued: “It is my sincere wish for you to be able to enjoy all of my music in your beautiful Greenland home, in its highest quality. This is an offer of Peace and Love.”
Young confirmed that this would include “all the music I have made during the last 62 years”. He added: “You can renew for free as long as you are in Greenland. We do hope other organisations will follow in the spirit of our example. LOVE EARTH. Neil.”
Young, a vocal critic of Trump, has spoken out on numerous occasions and recently urged Americans to “rise up” in the wake of ICE’s fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minnesota. Young wrote of Trump that “every move he makes is to build instability so he can stay in power” and that he “knows nothing about love. He does not know you are. Use your love of life, your love of one another, your love of children and theirs and ours.”
In another recent post, coming after Young announced he would be removing his work from Amazon Music, the legendary artist criticised Amazon and Jeff Bezos.
“Amazon is owned by Jeff Bezos, a billionaire backer of the president. The president’s international policies and his support of ICE, make it impossible for me to ignore his actions,” he shared.
“If you feel as I do, I strongly recommend that you do not use AMAZON. There are many ways to avoid AMAZON and support individual Americans and American companies that supply the same products. I have done that with my music and people who are looking can find it in a lot of other places.”
Young went on to say that record stores “provide all my vinyl and CDs, while the digital world has many alternative options to purchase my music if you like it. My music will never be available on AMAZON, as long as it is owned by Bezos. My position is unfortunately harmful to my record company in the short term but I think the message I am sending is important and clear.”
Young recently announced a European summer tour kicking off at the Eden Project in Cornwall, UK, on 17 June.
