Back in October a dance track called ‘I Run’ - which sounded like it featured vocals by Jorja Smith - went viral on TikTok and was then set to chart after arriving on streaming services. However, the vocals had been AI generated without Smith’s involvement.
Now her record label, FAMM - which is distributed by Sony Music’s The Orchard - is calling for AI-generated music to be clearly labelled, and for artists whose music is used to train AI models to be compensated and credited.
“Creators are collateral damage in the race by governments and corporations towards AI dominance”, the label says in a lengthy Instagram post. The success of ‘I Run’ on TikTok and the streaming services, with many fans believing they were hearing a new Jorja Smith track, is “a clear example of why we all need to step up and push some guardrails before the moment is completely lost”, it then adds.
FAMM wants to know if AI also generated the melody and lyrics in ‘I Run’ and, if so, if the AI model was trained on Smith’s music. If it was, the label indicates it will seek a stake in the ‘I Run’ song copyright, which it says it will share with Smith’s co-writers on a pro-rata basis.
‘I Run’ was released by dance artist Haven, real name Harrison Walker, who insists he only used AI to manipulate the vocals. Walker initially recorded the vocals himself and then used Suno to convert them into a female voice. He says that he prompted the AI to rework his vocals into a “soulful” sound.
He told Billboard, “As a songwriter and producer I enjoy using new tools, techniques and staying on the cutting edge of what’s happening. To set the record straight, the artists behind Haven are real and human, and all we want to do is make great music for other humans”.
After going viral on TikTok, and with much chatter as to whether this was a new track from Smith, Walker and his collaborator Waypoint, real name Jacob Donaghue, pushed the track to streaming. It scored decent streams and was set to chart, until the track was removed from streaming platforms after FAMM issued takedowns on the basis it infringed Smith’s rights.
Where an AI outputs vocals that imitate a specific performer’s voice, two sets of rights are being exploited. First the model needs to be trained on that performer’s recordings, which involves copying lots of their tracks onto a server, in doing so exploiting an assortment of recording and song copyrights.
Then, in the output, the model is exploiting the separate rights in the artist’s voice, which in most countries would probably be an exploitation of the performer’s publicity or personality rights.
To date Suno has mainly argued that it doesn’t need permission to exploit music copyrights, because AI training constitutes ‘fair use’ under US law. Though given that Suno last week announced a licensing deal with Warner Music, it is presumably changing its position on all that.
With voice in the output, both Suno and Warner have acknowledged that artist consent is necessary. Though as deals start to be done around artist voices in the context of AI, it’s likely to result in debates about just how unique any one performer’s vocal sound really is.
Did Walker actually steer Suno towards Smith’s sound? Or did Suno interpret “soulful” and “female” to mean vocals in the style of Smith? Or is the fact the vocals sounded so like Smith just a coincidence?
That said, according to The Guardian, many of Haven’s social media posts promoting the track included the tag #jorjasmith.
Which arguably makes things more straightforward legally speaking, even in the UK where there are no personality rights currently available in law. Because there would still be a case for arguing that Walker is liable for ‘passing off’, because he deliberately misled consumers into thinking his track was something it was not, ie a new Jorja Smith record.
According to FAMM’s statement, confusing the public into thinking ‘I Run’ featured Smith on vocals was part of Haven’s marketing strategy, “and it’s worked because look at the storm that’s been created and that they are now profiting from”.
Williams, Donahue and their business partners “could have made the public aware that Jorja's vocals did not feature” on the track but “instead appeared to revel in the confusion that had been created”.
FAMM also reveals that Walker suggested Smith embrace the confusion-generated hype by providing actual vocals for a remix. He did this, the label says, because he “needed to legitimise the track as the public had been led to believe that they were listening to Jorja Smith’s vocals”. FAMM did not respond to Walker’s remix proposal.
The label concludes, “AI material should be clearly labelled as such so that the public may choose whether they consume AI material or not. And creators who are happy for their protected works to be used to train AI should be credited and compensated accordingly”.