Days after he called U.S. President Donald Trump a “terrorist” at a free concert in Mexico City, the lead singer of the iconic Mexican rock band Café Tacvba is urging record labels to pull his group’s music from Spotify.
Rubén Albarrán, one of the founders of the band in 1989, is also calling on fans to boycott the online music platform.
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Albarrán posted this week on Instagram that he sent letters to Warner Music Mexico and Universal Music Mexico, asking them to remove Café Tacvba’s music from what he called the “Stupidfy” platform because it “contradicts our artistic vision and our personal and band ethics.”
In a video message, Albarrán said, “The reasons are already known: investments in weaponry, ICE advertising, our miserable royalties, and the use of artificial intelligence to the detriment of musicians and all people, because we believe that music should have meaning.” (ICE stands for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.)
Café Tacvba rose from the late 1980s alt-rock scene to become a defining act in Latin American music, blending rock, punk, folk and electronic sounds.
Named for the famous restaurant Café de Tacuba in central Mexico City, the group won the 2004 Grammy Award for best Latin rock/alternative album for “Cuatro Caminos.” They also have won nine Latin Grammy, and their second album, “Re,” has been ranked the No. 1 Latin American rock album of all time by Rolling Stone.
The group’s move against Spotify aligns it with artists such as Lorde, Björk, Massive Attack, and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, who have criticized Spotify’s business practices and its leadership’s investments in defense technology.
Albarrán said the band wants to avoid having its income tied to U.S. military actions and immigration enforcement.
He has also criticized Spotify because CEO Daniel Ek has invested hundreds of millions of euros in Helsing, a European military-technology company that develops AI-based weapons systems.
Spotify disputed the accusations, saying, “Spotify does not fund war. Helsing is an independent company that has been supplying defense technology to Ukraine. Furthermore, there are currently no ICE ads on Spotify; the aforementioned advertising was part of a U.S. government recruitment campaign that was disseminated across major media outlets and platforms.”
The company said its artificial intelligence policies are designed to protect human artists and noted that about 70% of revenue is paid to rights holders, adding it remains willing to keep working with Café Tacvba.
In his Instagram post on Wednesday, Albarrán urged fans to “listen to our music on other platforms” or fully boycott Spotify, arguing it is time “to create a new world, more just and equitable.”
Four days earlier, on Jan. 3, Albarrán joined the Pérez Prado Orchestra for a free Saturday concert at Mexico City’s Zócalo.
During the performance, he stated his position on the U.S. incursion into Venezuela and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, calling Trump a “terrorista.”
“Today is a sad day for Latin America, and that is why we are dancing and why we send these good wishes to Venezuela,” he told the audience. “This is not about supporting the Maduro regime, but we condemn the violent action of the U.S. in occupying a free and sovereign country. That cannot be.”
With reports from Rolling Stone en Español, El Universal and Radio Fórmula
