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Imagine creating something uniquely yours. Maybe it’s a deeply personal song that took months to perfect. You’re proud of the piece and decide to share it online. Within days, you discover songs with similar melodies, arrangements, and even vocal styles. Now they’re getting viral attention, much more than yours. Then, you find out that all the songs that are eerily similar to your piece were made by AI.
This situation is becoming increasingly common in today’s music industry. While AI tools help to make music creation more accessible, they’re also raising concerns about artistic authenticity and ownership.
From viral AI-generated tracks mimicking famous artists to groundbreaking partnerships between tech companies and major record labels, the music industry is grappling with a transformation that could redefine creativity itself. Let's explore how this technological revolution is reshaping the landscape of music creation, and what it means for artists and listeners alike.
There are many different AI tools emerging that create authentic-sounding music from text prompts. Suno is one such platform that uses a token-based approach similar to large language models (LLMs). While there’s still much controversy around these models, founders have said that Suno’s mission is to democratize music creation rather than replace human artists.
Udio is another tool that was developed by former DeepMind engineers. The platform gained attention when Metro Boomin unknowingly featured an Udio-generated song called "BBL Drizzy" that went viral in May 2024. While not giving too much away about their training data, Udio revealed in June 2024 that they work with filters to make sure their model does not reproduce copyrighted songs.
Furthermore, MicDrop is a SoundLabs plug-in that is used to create licensed voice models of artists. Universal Music Group (UMG) announced a recent partnership with SoundLabs to use their music software in an effort to enhance artist’s creativity (not to replace it).
Before diving into the legal risks of some of these platforms, it's worth noting their rising popularity is driven by several potential benefits, including:
The rise of AI music platforms has sparked significant controversy in the music industry. Many artists are concerned about the unauthorized use of their voices and have retaliated against these platforms.
Back in 2020, AI-generated music platforms began using Jay-Z’s voice to create new renditions of popular songs and literature. They included his voice rapping to Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” and Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” monologue. Though remarkably convincing, these unauthorized recreations were quickly removed following legal action from Jay-Z's team.
A more recent controversy occurred in 2023 with the AI-generated track “Heart of My Sleeve”, which mimicked the voices of Drake and The Weeknd. The song gained millions of views on TikTok and other platforms before being removed due to copyright claims.
In response to these growing AI concerns, over 200 artists, including Billie Eilish, Nicki Minaj, and Katy Perry, signed an open letter warning against the “predatory use of AI” in music. They argued that their voices are unique intellectual property and should be protected. The artists also expressed concerns about AI music generation devaluing human creativity.
As AI-generated music platforms continue to grow, legal teams are trying to keep pace. Existing copyright laws, designed for human-created content, face new challenges in addressing AI training data, voice replication, and creative ownership. Three significant legal developments highlight the evolving response to these challenges.
This case occurred back in 1988 and set precedent for protecting an individual’s distinctive voice. Actress Bette Midler successfully sued Ford for another singer imitating her voice in a commercial. While the case helped establish voice rights as protected property, its application to AI-generated content remains complex. Current copyright laws don't ban the use of music as a plug-in to AI or the use of voices that are already similar to an existing sound or singer.
In 2024, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) coordinated a lawsuit against the two AI music platforms previously mentioned, Suno and Udio. The RIAA alleged that these two startups are using unauthorized, copyrighted recordings in their training data. The platforms defend their practices under the "fair use" doctrine of US copyright law, but the ongoing case is bound to set important precedents for how AI companies can legally train their models on existing music.
Tennessee's Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act represents one of the first state-level responses to AI voice replication. Signed into law in March 2024, it provides comprehensive protection for artists' voices and likenesses against unauthorized AI use, including deepfakes and voice cloning. The act serves as a potential model for future legislation in other states.
While AI tools offer unprecedented opportunities for musical exploration, they also challenge our traditional understanding of authenticity and artistic ownership.
As we look to the future, the question is not whether we have to choose between human creativity and AI, but instead, how we can find ways for them to complement each other. Ultimately, the key lies in striking a balance between embracing AI’s innovative capabilities and safeguarding artists’ rights to their unique creativity.
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