By now you've probably seen the hashtag #TIDALforALL. When I first saw that hashtag (and the fact that it was being mentioned along with Spotify), I thought there must be some sort of awesome streaming service coming that would be free to the public. But it's not. In fact, while the tag sounds a lot like "free for all", it's quite the opposite.

Upon further investigation, there is no free Tidal service whatsoever. Unlike Spotify, who offers a free subscription, you're gonna have to lay down $9.99 a month for their lowest tier plan, known as Tidal Premium (the same price as Spotify Premium). But if you want the best they have to offer, be ready to pony up $19.99 a month. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that's twice as much as the best Spotify has to offer, but is it twice as good?

Their website claims that with Tidal HiFi you get "Lossless High Fidelity sound quality, high definition music videos and expertly curated editorial" and to be totally fair, Tidal HiFi's sound quality is superior to that of Spotify Premium (it better be).

But after spending time with Tidal HiFi, I'm not ready to ditch Spotify and tighten my budget up even more than it already is. And that's the problem most people seem to have with Tidal. It's hard to justify spending more money for entertainment when you're on a budget.

If the people at Spotify are as smart as I believe they are, they'll seize the opportunity and up their game while continuing to deliver a great service at a reasonable price. I believe I'll hold out and hope for the best.

Oh yeah...if you need another reason to hate Tidal, watch a group of some of the most out-of-touch people on the planet hold a press conference and act as if they're signing the Declaration of Independence in the below video. "We're going to change the course of history", says Jay-Z.

Nah man, you're just riding the coattails of the true trailblazers at Rhapsody and Spotify.

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