Federal Judge Orders Novel Amazon Music Discovery Phase in Shadowban Showdown: Taylor Swift Artist Station Curation, Algorithms Sought by Marc Mysterio's Attorney

Plaintiff's Attorney Michael H. Joseph Will Seek Amazon Music's Artists' Station Curation, Algorithms and Overall Suppressive Mechanisms in Landmark Lawsuit's Discovery Phase

NEW YORK, March 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- In a landmark first-of-its-kind ruling, a federal judge held that an independent musician has standing as a third-party beneficiary to sue a major DSP for breach of contract; therefore, Amazon Music will have to open its books in discovery.

Irish-Canadian Billboard-charting artist Marc Mysterio — a former Sony and Spinnin' Records signee with blockbuster collaborations including Flo Rida, Avicii, Crash Test Dummies, and Netflix's "Trailer Park Boys" (IFPI Gold-Certified) — sued the streaming giant for allegedly shadowbanning and suppressing his music to near-zero overnight. He did so despite racking up more than 3 million streams on Taylor Swift's station alone and more than 81 million total streams with nearly 15 million unique listeners in the year prior to the shadowban's imposition in mid-September 2024, as shown in the amended complaint's exhibits.

The claims: Mysterio's tracks were suddenly rendered unplayable with "streaming errors," removed from Amazon-curated artist stations —- including Swift's and Mysterio's — and key algorithmic A-list related artists were replaced overnight by zero-follower artists.

In August 2023, he made a gutsy all-in move: He pulled his catalog from rival platforms to go 100% Amazon-exclusive.

It paid off, initially. "The Dancefloor" soared to No. 36 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart and No. 1 globally on Amazon during Christmas 2023.

Then came the ultimate betrayal: alleged complete suppression and "streaming errors" starting in mid-September 2024.

In a landmark 40-page opinion and order (Case No. 1:25-cv-01705-KPF), U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla denied Amazon's motion to dismiss in part. "Discovery in Plaintiff's case against Amazon will thus focus on that point" — the alleged shadowban, she wrote.

The court ruled Mysterio is a third-party beneficiary of the DistroKid-Amazon distribution agreement, and plausibly alleged a 'pretextual' shadowban via breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

"This is the first time any court has permitted an artist's shadowbanning lawsuit against a major DSP   to survive dismissal and ordered discovery," said lead counsel Michael H. Joseph. "Amazon must   open its books. We're seeking curation, algorithms and the alleged malicious suppression code   employed on Taylor Swift's Station, Trending/Top Songs Charts, Artist Playlists, song-pitch   algorithms that erased metadata and caused streaming errors and station ineligibility, and alleged   'cut the tall grass' stream limits that impacted Mysterio's Billboard charting prior to fully suppressing   his music overnight in September 2024. The complaint's exhibits of Amazon's own analytics speak   for themselves."

"This isn't just one artist's fight — it's the shot heard 'round the world," Mysterio said. "This fight is for all content creators silenced arbitrarily by DSPs."

Mysterio is pursuing more than $245,000 in unpaid royalties from August/September 2024, plus future losses already estimated at more than $3 million based on Kenford Before-and-After Method — retroactive to the shadowban date.

Mysterio added: "Michael cracked the code artists have been praying for. I went all-in on Amazon as an exclusive artist, voluntarily, and this was my reward. It's about damn time for accountability — arbitrary platform suppression must end."

The full story — backed by video and Amazon's own analytics evidence — unfolds in a four-part documentary narrated by Mysterio at shadowban.me.

Legal Contact
Michael H. Joseph, Esq.
Photo
[email protected]
https://www.newyorktriallawyers.org
Amended Complaint/Exhibits
Judge Failla's Opinion (03.13.2026)

Media Contact
Pádraig O'Connor
[email protected]
Marc Mysterio X: @marc_mysterio
Shadowban Documentary: https://shadowban.me/
Marc Mysterio Photo

SOURCE Law Office of Michael H. Joseph, PLLC