I'm one of those weirdos who still buys and downloads MP3 files when available. Granted, I do use YouTube to find music I want to buy, but they're putting their music there.

Wouldn't it be their fault for choosing a career with such an allegedly small market? They're the ones giving into the DRM shit and streaming services. And if they're only doing it because it's the only way to get paid to make music then what is the complaint exactly? If there is no alternative really then I don't see how that makes anyone servicing the industry a dick.

There is an alternative though. People used to value music more because they actually had to go buy it I think. Now, I have to go out of my way to find people who will actually sell me their music instead of whatever streaming platform they're on.

But I'm not interested in "buying" music on some platform that can just take it back either. I think DRM is part of the problem. I don't want to go and buy stuff I may not actually be able to keep. So renting it is the next logical option for me, and that sort of model lends itself to something like Spotify. In my case, YouTube Premium to avoid ads, but I use it for stuff other than music.

You can't lock your music down and then tell people they're rent seeking for getting your music the way you've incentivized them to get it.