🔗 Share this article

The record label representing Brit Award-winning singer Jorja Smith has declared its desire to claim a portion of earnings from a track it asserts was created using an artificial intelligence "clone" of the singer's unique vocal style.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK electronic duo Haven, gained widespread traction on TikTok in October, in part due to its polished soul vocals by an uncredited woman singer.

Despite its momentum and impending top 40 entry in the UK and US, the track was subsequently removed by leading music services after industry bodies issued copyright notices, alleging it violated copyright by impersonating another artist.

Although 'I Run' has since been reissued with completely new vocals, Smith's label, FAMM, maintains it is convinced the original version was made with AI programmed on her extensive work and is now pursuing appropriate redress.

A Larger Issue in Play

"The situation is not only about one artist. This is larger than a single performer or one song," the label wrote in a recent announcement.

FAMM also expressed its view that "each versions of the track violate the artist's rights and unjustly take advantage of the creative output of all the writers with whom she collaborates."

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

Implying that her supporters were potentially misled by Haven's first track, the label concluded: "Our industry must not permit this to become the standard practice."

Creators Acknowledge Using AI Technology

The team responsible for the track have openly admitted using AI during its production process.

Producer Harrison Walker clarified that the original vocals were actually his own but were extensively manipulated using AI music platform Suno, sometimes called the "ChatGPT for music".

Meanwhile, the other producer, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on his accounts that AI was used to "give our starting vocal a female tone".

Donaghue and Walker assert that they composed and created the music themselves and have even provided files of their original computer files.

"This shouldn't be secret that I used AI-powered vocal processing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker elaborated.

"Being a songwriter and maker, I like experimenting with new tools, techniques and remaining on the cutting edge of industry trends," he continued.

"To set the facts clear, the artists behind HAVEN are real and human, and all we want to do is make enjoyable music for fellow humans."

Legal Gray Areas and Broader Implications

While their original version of 'I Run' was suspended from official charts, the replacement version managed to break into the UK Top 40 last week.

FAMM has framed the entire episode as a critical precedent for the entertainment sector's evolving interaction with AI.

The label argued it had "an obligation to voice concerns" and "encourage wider discussion", because AI is proliferating at an "rapid rate and significantly exceeding legal oversight".

"AI-generated content should be transparently identified as such so that the audience may choose whether they listen to it or not," the message continued.

Creators Become 'Collateral Victims'

Smith shared her label's statement on her own Instagram page.

The text warned that musicians and songwriters were becoming "collateral damage in the race by governments and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

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

"Should we are able in establishing that AI helped to write the lyrics and melody in 'I Run' and are granted a portion of the song, we would seek to assign every one of Jorja's collaborators with a pro-rata share," it explained.

The Continuing Rise of AI Music

The proliferation of algorithmically created music has been a source of both fascination and consternation for the entertainment world.

• In the summer, the group Velvet Sundown accumulated millions of plays before disclosing they used AI to help craft their musical style.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" called Breaking Rust led a US genre digital song sales chart, showing that audiences are not necessarily opposed to hearing computer-generated music.
• Suno was previously sued for alleged violations by the world's three largest record labels, though those cases have now been resolved.

Following this, Warner Music established a collaboration with the firm, which will enable users to generate songs using the vocal likenesses, names, and likenesses of Warner acts who agree to the service.

However, it is uncertain how many established artists will agree to such uses of their identity.

Just last week, a collective of prominent musicians such as Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album featuring silent songs or recordings of quiet studios in opposition to potential changes to copyright law.

They argue these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to train models using protected work without securing a license.