Legendary folk-rock icon Neil Young is once again taking a stand — this time against Amazon and its CEO, Jeff Bezos. The 79-year-old artist announced that he will be removing his entire music catalog from Amazon Music, urging fans to boycott the tech giant and other corporate platforms he believes are fueling what he calls “the Corporate Control Age.”
The decision, revealed on his Neil Young Archives website, marks another chapter in the singer’s long history of protest through music and activism. Known for his outspoken views on environmental issues, political integrity, and artistic independence, Young’s latest move underscores his growing frustration with corporate influence in American life.
“Forget Amazon and Whole Foods. Forget Facebook. Buy Local.”
On his website, Young didn’t mince words. “Forget Amazon and Whole Foods. Forget Facebook. Buy local. Buy direct,” the post read, featuring logos of Amazon, Whole Foods, and Meta, the parent company of Facebook. “Bezos supports this government.”
The message calls out not only Amazon’s corporate practices but also its CEO’s alleged support for the Trump Administration — something Young says he cannot stand behind.
“It is easy to buy local. Support your community,” Young continued. “Don’t go back to the big corporations who have sold out America. We all have to give up something to save America from the Corporate Control Age it is entering. They need you to buy from them. Don’t.”
In essence, Young is asking fans to sacrifice convenience for conscience — to trade the simplicity of a streaming subscription for the principle of supporting smaller, independent businesses.
A Protest Rooted in Principle
Young’s decision comes amid a prolonged government shutdown, which as of October 10 had entered its tenth day. On his website, he tied the shutdown to broader themes of corruption and greed, accusing the current government of failing its citizens.
“They shut down our government, your income, your safety, your family’s health security,” he wrote. “Take America back together — stop buying from the big corporations. Support local business. Do the right thing. Show who you are.”
The folk singer has never shied away from political statements, and this latest message continues his decades-long pattern of using his platform to challenge power structures. From protesting war in the 1970s to criticizing big oil and tech companies in recent years, Young’s activism remains consistent in tone and spirit: fiercely independent, anti-establishment, and deeply moral.
A Complicated Relationship with Streaming Giants
This isn’t the first time Neil Young has pulled his catalog from a major streaming platform. In early 2022, he removed his music from Spotify in protest against “The Joe Rogan Experience,” accusing the podcast and Spotify of spreading “fake information about vaccines” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the time, Young wrote, “They can have Rogan or Young. Not both.” The move triggered a wider debate about misinformation in digital media and the responsibility of streaming platforms to moderate content.
However, two years later, Young quietly returned his catalog to Spotify, citing the reality that both Apple and Amazon were also distributing similar content. “I cannot just leave Apple and Amazon like I did Spotify, because my music would have very little streaming outlet to music lovers at all,” he explained. “So I have returned to Spotify.”
That return, however, appears short-lived — at least where Amazon is concerned.
Bezos, Zuckerberg, and the “Corporate Control Age”
Young’s new stance takes direct aim at Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, both of whom he portrays as symbols of unchecked corporate power. He has accused Bezos of aligning himself with former President Donald Trump — despite the two men’s historically complicated relationship.
Earlier this year, reports surfaced that Bezos and Trump had dined together at Mar-a-Lago, following a period of improved relations. The Washington Post (which Bezos owns) had also published a congratulatory note following Trump’s 2024 election victory, signaling a thaw between two figures who were once fierce critics of each other.
Young’s post seems to interpret this as evidence of complicity. “Bezos supports this government,” he wrote flatly — a statement that reflects his frustration with what he sees as the merging of corporate and political power at the expense of everyday citizens.
He also directed ire toward Zuckerberg’s Meta, grouping the social media conglomerate with Amazon and Whole Foods in his boycott call. While he didn’t specify particular grievances, Young has previously criticized social media companies for spreading disinformation, polarizing communities, and exploiting user data.
“Take America Back” — A Call to Grassroots Action
At its heart, Young’s message is less about his music and more about mobilization. The website reads as both a manifesto and a plea: for people to buy from their local stores, support small businesses, and reclaim a sense of community disconnected from massive corporate influence.
“Support your community,” he urges. “Go to the local store. Don’t go back to the big corporations who have sold out America.”
It’s a message consistent with his lifelong ethos. Whether advocating for family farms in the 1980s through Farm Aid, or fighting climate change through environmental campaigns, Young has long positioned himself as a defender of ordinary people and the planet.
In the 2020s, that same energy has found a new frontier — the digital marketplace. For Young, the streaming economy represents the latest iteration of what he calls “corporate control.” His call to action is, in essence, a modern protest song expressed in blog form: simple, emotional, and defiantly human.
A Legacy of Conviction
At 79, Neil Young shows no sign of softening his stance or compromising his values for convenience. He remains a voice of moral clarity in a world he views as increasingly transactional.
While critics may dismiss his boycott as symbolic, for Young, symbolism matters. Every act of resistance — no matter how small — is part of a larger effort to awaken consumers to their own power.
Whether his music disappears from Amazon for good or not, Neil Young’s latest stand reinforces what his fans have known for decades: that he is an artist guided not by profit or popularity, but by principle.
And in a cultural landscape dominated by streaming numbers and brand partnerships, that kind of authenticity is a rare and radical thing.