Soul Vocalist the Artist's Music Company Takes Stand Against Popular 'Artificial Intelligence Clone' Track

The record label representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its intention to receive a share of royalties from a track it asserts was created using an AI "replica" of the performer's distinctive voice.

The track, titled 'I Run' by British electronic duo Haven, gained widespread traction on TikTok last October, in part due to its polished R&B singing by an unnamed female singer.

Although its success and impending chart position in the UK and US, the song was later banned by major streaming platforms after industry bodies issued takedown notices, alleging it violated intellectual property law by impersonating another musician.

Although 'I Run' has since been reissued with different vocals, Smith's label, FAMM, maintains it believes the initial recording was generated with AI programmed on her body of recordings and is now pursuing financial redress.

A Broader Principle at Stake

"The situation isn't just about one artist. It's bigger than one artist or one song," the label wrote in a recent announcement.

FAMM further expressed its view that "each versions of the song infringe on the artist's rights and unjustly take advantage of the work of all the writers with whom she works."

Known 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 potentially deceived by Haven's original track, the label concluded: "We must not permit this to become the standard practice."

Creators Admit Employing AI Tools

The duo responsible for the song have openly admitted utilizing AI in its production process.

Producer Harrison Walker clarified that the original voice were actually his own but were heavily manipulated using music-generation platform Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

In addition, the second producer, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on his accounts that AI was used to "apply our original vocal a female quality".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and produced the music themselves and have even shared evidence of their original computer files.

"It is no secret that I used AI-powered vocal processing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker said.

"Being a songwriter and maker, I enjoy experimenting with innovative technologies, techniques and remaining on the forefront of what's happening," he continued.

"In order to set the record straight, the people behind HAVEN are actual and human, and all we want to do is make enjoyable music for fellow humans."

Legal Uncertainty and Industry Impact

Although their original version of 'I Run' was suspended from official charts, the new version did enter the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has positioned the incident as a significant precedent for the entertainment sector's evolving interaction with artificial intelligence.

The label stated it had "an obligation to voice concerns" and "stimulate public discourse", because AI is proliferating at an "rapid rate and significantly outpacing regulation".

"Computer-created material should be clearly labelled as such so that the audience may decide whether they consume it or not," the statement added.

Creators Become 'Unintended Damage'

Smith endorsed her label's position on her personal social media profile.

The post cautioned that musicians and creators were becoming "unintended casualties in the competition by governments and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

It also stated that the label would share any potential songwriting credits with the collaborators behind Smith's catalogue.

"If we are able in establishing that AI helped to write the words and melody in 'I Run' and are granted a share of the song, we would aim to assign each of Jorja's co-writers with a pro-rata share," it explained.

The Continuing Growth of Computer-Generated Music

The emergence of AI-generated music has been a topic of both fascination and anxiety for the music industry.

• In June, the band Velvet Sundown accumulated millions of streams before revealing they used AI to aid craft their sound.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" known as Breaking Rust led a US country sales chart, demonstrating that audiences are not necessarily averse to hearing AI-made music.
• Suno was previously taken to court for alleged violations by the industry's three biggest record labels, but those cases have since been resolved.

Following this, Warner Music entered into a collaboration with the firm, which will enable users to generate songs using the voices, names, and images of Warner acts who agree to the service.

However, it is unclear how many well-known artists will agree to such uses of their work.

Just last week, a group of renowned musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album containing tracks of silence or audio of empty studios in opposition to potential revisions to copyright law.

They contend these changes would make it simpler for AI companies to develop models using protected work without obtaining a license.