- Several artists demanded that Joe Rogan's content be removed from Spotify over misinformation.
- R&B artist India Arie added to the conversation saying she condemns his "language around race."
- Joe Rogan called a video montage Arie posted of him using the N-word 24 times "a political hit job."
Controversial comedian and podcaster Joe Rogan said that the video compilation of him saying the N-word is a "political hit job" on a Tuesday episode of his podcast.
R&B artist India Arie posted the video Saturday following the departure of Neil Young and Joni Mitchell from Spotify condemning Rogan's show for sharing misinformation around COVID-19.
"Neil Young opened a door that I must walk through," Arie said via an Instagram post. "I believe in freedom of speech. However, I find Joe Rogan problematic for reasons other than his COVID interviews. For me, it's also his language around race."
In the video compilation, Rogan, a white man, uses the racial slur 24 times.
"In a lot of ways, this is a relief because that video had always been out there. It's like, this is a political hit job," the comedian said. "And so they're taking all this stuff I've ever said that's wrong and smushing it all together."
Rogan also added, "It's good because it makes me address some shit that I really wish wasn't out there."
Rogan had previously posted Instagram in response to the compilation video depicting his use of the racial slur saying it was "the most regretful and shameful thing I've ever had to talk about publicly."
Rogan said in the Instagram video that he initially thought so long as he used the racial slur "in context" that the audience would "understand" what he was doing.
He also argued that the video compilation removed that context and said he hasn't used the word in years because he knows better now.
Amid the controversy, Rumble, a right-leaning video site, presented Rogan with a $100 million offer. He declined — saying Spotify stood by him "inexplicably."
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said that he does "not believe that silencing Joe is the answer" and declined to remove him from the platform.
Spotify is the only platform to host the comedian's podcast, "The Joe Rogan Experience," since signing an exclusive multi-year deal with him in 2020 worth over $100 million. The platform quietly deleted over 70 episodes of his podcast Friday, unrelated to COVID-19 misinformation.
Rogan did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.