Soul Singer the Artist's Music Label Takes Stand Regarding Popular 'Artificial Intelligence Clone' Song

The record label representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its intention to receive a portion of earnings from a song it asserts was produced using an AI "clone" of the performer's unique vocal style.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK dance act Haven, gained massive popularity on TikTok last October, partly due to its smooth soul singing by an uncredited woman singer.

Although its success and potential chart position in the UK and US, the song was later banned by major music services after music bodies sent takedown requests, stating it breached copyright by imitating another artist.

Even though 'I Run' has since been reissued with different singing, Smith's label, FAMM, maintains it is convinced the original recording was made with AI programmed on her body of work and is now seeking financial compensation.

A Broader Principle at Stake

"This is not only about one artist. This is larger than a single performer or one song," the label stated in a recent statement.

FAMM also expressed its belief that "both iterations of the song infringe on the artist's rights and unfairly benefit from the creative output of all the songwriters with whom she works."

Famous for hits like 'Be Honest' and 'Little Things', Smith was crowned Best British Female at the prestigious Brit Awards in 2019.

Suggesting that her supporters were possibly misled by Haven's first track, the label added: "Our industry must not permit this to become the new normal."

Creators Admit Employing AI Technology

The team behind the track have publicly admitted utilizing AI in its creation.

Songwriter Harrison Walker explained that the initial voice were in fact his own but were extensively manipulated using music-generation software Suno, often referred to as the "advanced tool for music".

In addition, the second producer, Waypoint, whose real name is Jacob Donaghue, stated on social media that AI was used to "give our starting vocal a female quality".

Donaghue and Walker assert that they composed and created the music themselves and have even shared evidence of their source production sessions.

"It shouldn't be mystery that I used AI-assisted vocal editing to convert exclusively my voice for 'I Run'," Walker elaborated.

"Being a creator and maker, I like experimenting with new tools, methods and remaining on the cutting edge of what's happening," he continued.

"In order to set the facts clear, the artists behind HAVEN are real and people, and all we aim to do is make great music for fellow humans."

Regulatory Uncertainty and Broader Impact

While their first release of 'I Run' was suspended from official rankings, the replacement version managed to enter the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has framed the entire episode as a significant precedent for the music industry's changing interaction with AI.

The label argued it had "a duty to speak up" and "stimulate public discourse", because AI is advancing at an "rapid rate and substantially exceeding regulation".

"AI-generated material should be clearly labelled as such so that the audience may decide whether they listen to it or not," the statement added.

Creators Become 'Unintended Victims'

Smith endorsed her label's position on her personal Instagram page.

The post warned that musicians and creators were turning into "unintended casualties in the race by policymakers and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

It further noted that the label would distribute any potential songwriting credits with the writers behind Smith's music.

"If we are successful in proving that AI helped to compose the lyrics and melody in 'I Run' and are awarded a portion of the song, we would aim to assign each of Jorja's co-writers with a corresponding share," it explained.

The Ongoing Growth of Computer-Generated Music

The proliferation of AI-generated music has been a topic of both interest and anxiety for the entertainment world.

• In the summer, the band Velvet Sundown gathered millions of plays before disclosing they used AI to help develop their sound.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" called Breaking Rust led a US country sales chart, showing that audiences are not necessarily opposed to consuming computer-generated music.
• Suno was previously sued for copyright infringement by the world's three largest record labels, but those cases have now been settled.

Following this, Warner Music entered into a partnership with the company, which will allow users to generate songs using the voices, names, and images of Warner artists who opt in to the program.

Yet, it is uncertain how a large number of established artists will agree to such applications of their work.

Just last week, a collective of renowned musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album featuring tracks of silence or recordings of empty studios in protest to potential revisions to copyright law.

They argue these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to develop models using copyrighted work without obtaining a permission.