🔗 Share this article Pop Singer Jorja Smith's Music Label Takes a Firm Position Against Viral 'Artificial Intelligence Clone' Track The artist's voice were allegedly replicated in the production of the viral song, 'I Run'. The record label representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its intention to claim a share of earnings from a song it claims was produced using an AI "clone" of the singer's distinctive vocal style. The track, titled 'I Run' by UK electronic duo Haven, gained widespread traction on social media in October, in part due to its polished soul vocals by an uncredited woman singer. Although its momentum and potential chart entry in both UK and US, the song was later banned by leading streaming platforms after industry bodies sent copyright requests, alleging it violated intellectual property law by imitating another artist. Even though 'I Run' has now been re-released with different singing, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it is convinced the initial version was made with AI trained on her body of recordings and is now seeking appropriate compensation. A Larger Issue in Play "The situation isn't just about one artist. It's larger than a single performer or one song," the label wrote in a public announcement. FAMM also stated its view that "both iterations of the track infringe on the artist's rights and unjustly take advantage of the work of all the writers with whom she works." Famous for hits like 'Be Honest' and 'Little Things', Smith was named Best British Female at the annual Brit Awards in 2019. Suggesting that her fans were potentially misled by Haven's original track, the label added: "Our industry cannot permit this to be the new normal." Creators Admit Using AI Tools One creator confirmed the use of AI in a social media post. The duo behind the song have openly admitted utilizing AI during its production process. Songwriter Harrison Walker clarified that the original vocals were in fact his own but were heavily manipulated using AI music platform Suno, often referred to as the "ChatGPT for music". Meanwhile, the second member, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, stated on social media that AI was used to "apply our starting vocal a female tone". Donaghue and Walker assert that they composed and produced the song themselves and have even shared files of their original production sessions. "It is no mystery that I used AI-powered vocal editing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker elaborated. "As a creator and producer, I enjoy experimenting with innovative technologies, techniques and staying on the cutting edge of what's happening," he added. "To set the record clear, the people behind HAVEN are actual and human, and all we want to do is make great music for other humans." Legal Gray Areas and Broader Impact The singer has won multiple Brit Awards, including the best female artist in 2019. Although their first release of 'I Run' was blocked from major charts, the replacement version did enter the UK Top 40 recently. FAMM has positioned the incident as a critical test case for the entertainment sector's evolving relationship with artificial intelligence. The label stated it had "an obligation to voice concerns" and "encourage public discourse", because AI is proliferating at an "alarming rate and substantially exceeding legal oversight". "Computer-created content should be transparently identified as such so that the audience may choose whether they consume it or not," the statement continued. Artists as 'Unintended Damage' Smith shared her label's position on her own social media profile. The text warned that musicians and creators were turning into "unintended casualties in the race by governments and corporations towards AI supremacy". It further stated that the label would share any awarded royalties with the writers behind Smith's music. "If we are successful in proving that AI assisted to compose the words and melody in 'I Run' and are awarded a share 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 emergence of AI-generated music has been a source of both interest and consternation for the entertainment world. In the summer, the group Velvet Sundown gathered vast numbers of streams before revealing they used AI to aid craft their sound. Last month, an AI-generated "artist" known as Breaking Rust topped a US genre digital song sales chart, demonstrating that audiences are not always averse to hearing AI-made music. Suno was last year taken to court for copyright infringement by the industry's three largest record labels, but those cases have now been settled. Subsequently, Warner Music entered into a partnership with the firm, which will enable users to generate songs using the voices, names, and likenesses of Warner artists who agree to the service. However, it remains unclear how a large number of well-known artists will agree to such applications of their work. Recently, a group of renowned artists including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album featuring silent songs or audio of empty studios in protest to proposed changes to intellectual property regulations. They contend these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to develop systems using copyrighted work without obtaining a license.