From viral AI Drake tracks to Grimes embracing synthetic voices, artificial intelligence is reshaping the music landscape. Dive into the controversy as we explore how AI is disrupting the industry, examining both the fierce opposition from established artists and the innovative ways others are incorporating this technology into their creative process.
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00:00All I know is you could have had the world, had the world, yeah you were my world.
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we'll be doing a deep dive into the current state of AI music,
00:12looking at how it affects the industry as a whole.
00:15What we do and the things we create over the next few decades will probably shape
00:20like all minds going forward for the rest of time.
00:24Once upon a time, an AI that could generate music was an entirely science fiction concept.
00:31In recent years, it's become a reality.
00:42Now, anyone able to surf the web can have an AI generate whole songs to entire albums.
00:49Of course, many musicians are rattled by these eerie advancements.
00:52Countless artists have raised their voices in protest, such as Céline Zion, Billie Eilish, Stevie Wonder, and loads more.
01:01Creative industries and creators around the country are totally unified in their opposition and their shock at these plans.
01:09And, you know, I mean, it's very hard to find anyone in the creative industries who thinks it's a good idea.
01:14On the other side of the fence, artists like Grimes are eager to implement AI into their creative process.
01:20And then when I release my album, I'm also going to release a competitive AI album.
01:25So like releasing like a Grimes album and a Grimes AI made by others album at the same time.
01:29Yes. And which one performs better?
01:31The only thing both sides can agree on is that it's a major turning point for the industry.
01:37Scientists first researched AI music in the 1950s, but it's only recently become commercially available.
01:43Tools like Suno AI, which was released in December 2023, allow anyone to make music.
01:51You don't need talent or musical proficiency, just an idea.
01:55Now, AI music is super common online, but is there any way to tell its AI?
02:00Also, who even owns it?
02:02The AI itself, the artist being copied, or the person who typed the prompt?
02:06These are the biggest issues with AI music right now.
02:17The ethics and legality are still undecided, particularly concerning copyright laws.
02:23A work needs to be original, fixed to a tangible medium, and have human authorship.
02:28This element of human authorship is not really disputed, discussed, or litigated very often.
02:36The UK has recently implemented AI-friendly copyright reforms, which received huge backlash.
02:43America so far hasn't copied the UK's decision, but many are worried they will.
02:48In America, the first legal AI legislation came from Tennessee in March 2024.
02:54Congress will be lobbied to a point where they will need to define again
02:59the meaning of human authorship as it maybe relates to contemporary society.
03:04It's called the Elvis Act, which makes it illegal to recreate a performer's voice without permission.
03:10It's a huge step forward for protecting artists.
03:13Many hope other states will follow, which will comfort many artists scared of being dethroned by AI.
03:19I heard a demo a while back.
03:21I said, I don't even remember writing that song.
03:23They went, you didn't.
03:24I said, okay, we got to put a stop at this right now.
03:27Currently, the biggest legal battle is between record labels and the AI tools Suno and Udio.
03:34The labels claim they're using AI to mimic artists without licensing, arguing it's a copyright violation.
03:40You feel like you own it, even though you're actually combining works of other people that have already written things like this.
03:47The tools instead claim it's fair use.
03:50Whoever wins will determine the future of these laws in America.
03:53Another notorious case was the heart-on-my-sleeve controversy.
03:57In 2023, a song featuring an AI version of Drake and The Weeknd became a viral sensation.
04:04Loads believed it was a leak, but it was AI all along.
04:08Platforms rushed to remove it, considering it copyright infringement.
04:12The core question at the center of this debate is whether AI makes real artwork.
04:24According to the dictionary, art is made to be beautiful or to express feelings and ideas.
04:30It also says it can simply be a painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.
04:34If I listen to a piece of music, and I like it, if it makes me dance or sing or cry, do I care if an AI made it?
04:43But on the other hand, I really believe that music is human expression.
04:48It is awe and love and joy and fear and jealousy, all woven into waves in the air.
04:55There's no hard definition, and without one, it's still undecided whether AI makes real art.
05:01It's a hot topic of debate for philosophers.
05:03For example, George Dickey says if it's displayed in an art museum, that makes it art.
05:09So regardless of its origin, if the viewer thinks it's art, then it's art.
05:14A fascinating example is the art robot Ada.
05:17It was built in 2019, looks like a human, and uses advanced technology to paint.
05:23I am Ada.
05:25I'm the world's first ultra-realistic artist robot.
05:29I'm named after the British mathematician, Ada Lovelace.
05:33One of their paintings sold for $1.3 million, an incredible sum.
05:38The team behind it argues art needs to be, quote, new, surprising, and of cultural value.
05:44Therefore, Ada's creations are art.
05:47On the other hand, it lacks emotions entirely.
05:49This artwork is a portrait of Alan Turing, the brilliant British mathematician who laid the foundation for modern computing and artificial intelligence.
06:01The portrait has a fractured and layered quality, reflecting our current fragmented and multifaceted worlds.
06:09It's also not original.
06:11It's merging pre-existing images, meaning it can't come up with new ideas.
06:15Also, the ethics are still debated, with many believing it could reduce job opportunities.
06:20I do not aim to replace human artists.
06:24I aim to inspire viewers to think about how we use AI positively, while remaining conscious of its risks and limitations.
06:33Quite a few musicians have pushed back against AI music, fearing their jobs are at stake.
06:38They're just really trying to find a way to incorporate AI and related technologies into the music industry in a way that doesn't harm the livelihood of creators.
06:51The most noteworthy pushback came in 2024, when over 200 artists signed an open letter demanding protection from AI.
07:00They're worried businesses will no longer need their talents, just a few sound bites of their voice.
07:05Then, the AI can do the rest of the work, replicating their voice and jamming it onto an instrumental it generated.
07:12Though it really isn't about legislation, this is the artist speaking directly to the AI developers,
07:17to the tech and digital companies saying, work with us, don't use AI to replace human voice.
07:23Stars that signed this letter include Billie Eilish, Stevie Wonder, and Nicki Minaj.
07:28It was a huge statement, but did it have any effect?
07:32Not directly, but it helped raise awareness and prompted discussions.
07:36There's certainly a place for it, but when an artist themselves says they can't recognize whether it's their voice or artificial intelligence,
07:42you gotta get ahead of the problem.
07:43In February 2025, an album titled Is This What We Want? was released,
07:49with over 1,000 artists credited as co-writers.
07:52These include huge names like Kate Bush and Damon Albarn.
07:56Don't get too excited.
07:57It consists of 12 tracks, all silent.
08:00The song names combine to say the British government must not legalize music theft to benefit AI companies.
08:15If you can't tell already, it was a protest album.
08:18Celine Dion has also recently warned fans to beware of AI songs, which steal her voice and likeness.
08:25Not all musicians oppose AI.
08:28Many embrace it.
08:29The McDonald had a farm, B-I-E-I-O, and on that farm he had a pig, B-I-E-I-O.
08:38It just transformed my singing into yours.
08:40The most prominent among them is Grimes.
08:43She supports it so much, she'll let anyone make AI music replicating her voice.
08:48Not only that, but she'll share the profits with them,
08:51plus upload it to her official Grimes AI streaming page.
08:54At the time of this video, Grimes has over 6 million monthly Spotify listeners,
09:04and her AI has only 1% of that figure.
09:07So it's not as popular as she'd like.
09:10Another artist, Taryn Southern, released an album composed by an AI.
09:15She wrote the lyrics, but pretty much everything else was the machine.
09:18On Spotify, the play counts are fairly small, so it failed to make a big splash.
09:30The most controversial use is to recreate the dead.
09:33Producer Timbaland created a brand new Biggie Smalls song in 2023, 26 years after his death.
09:40As you may expect, many found it disrespectful and unethical.
09:50It's not all doom and gloom.
09:52There are ethical applications for AI in music.
09:55While bringing back dead voices is contentious,
09:58Paul McCartney used AI technology to finish an old John Lennon demo.
10:02It was originally an old demo handed over to him by Yoko Ono.
10:13Unfortunately, the sound quality was so poor, it was unusable.
10:17Thankfully, AI came to save the day,
10:20cleaning up the demo and letting them finally finish the song.
10:23Venezuelan musician Arca also makes good use of AI.
10:33Her music has always been strange,
10:35but she uses AI to make it even weirder,
10:38letting it create extremely experimental soundscapes.
10:48Those who benefit most seem to be the people with certain disabilities.
10:52Playing instruments might have been impossible for them in the past.
10:56That's why the Jest Plus robot was developed,
10:58helping them compose music and play instruments.
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11:24Musicians are terrified of AI stealing their jobs.
11:28On the other hand,
11:29when musicians embrace AI,
11:31it's not as lucrative as they'd expect.
11:33In the future,
11:34as the technology improves,
11:36this might not be the case.
11:37This is a song made by someone who does not make music,
11:40who has tastes,
11:42who loves it,
11:42who finds it as an outlet,
11:43who loves sharing it with people,
11:45who loves the process of making it.
11:48This is something that can bring joy to people
11:50who are not used to being creators.
11:52Hopefully, humans can use it responsibly,
11:55but finding this balance isn't easy.
11:57It's an ethical and legal minefield.
12:00We'll only truly know what direction we're headed
12:02when governments and courts set clearer rules,
12:05like the Elvis Act.
12:06Last month,
12:07Tennessee became the first state to pass a law
12:09protecting musicians from AI,
12:12the Elvis Act,
12:14which stands for Ensuring Likeness,
12:16Voice, and Image Security.
12:18Recently,
12:19the Universal Music Group revealed
12:20its three principles for AI in music.
12:23These include embracing AI,
12:25but simultaneously protecting artists.
12:28In the future,
12:29mandatory labeling could become normal,
12:31with songs being forced to have an AI-generated tag.
12:35Alternatively,
12:36music could become a seamless hybrid.
12:38It wouldn't even surprise me
12:40that if we look at the top chart of Spotify today,
12:43that there's a legitimate use of AI done by artists,
12:47and we would allow for them.
12:48If this is the case,
12:50it might be possible for audiences
12:51to tell what is and isn't AI.
12:54At the end of the day,
12:55they may not even care.
12:57DreamTrack,
12:58which is being tested as an integration
13:00into YouTube's TikTok rival,
13:02YouTube Shorts,
13:03allows creators to make AI-generated songs
13:06with the voices of famous artists.
13:09Nine big-name artists are participating
13:11and being paid for their participation by YouTube.
13:14Given the human passion for music,
13:16it would be rather pessimistic
13:18to assume AI will ruin the music industry.
13:21However,
13:21it would be overly optimistic
13:23not to expect huge changes
13:24because of the technology.
13:26And also like,
13:27there are going to be guardrails
13:28about how their voices are going to be used,
13:30then they want to get on board.
13:31If they feel like it's just a wild west
13:33and people are going to be stealing their voices,
13:35then that's a threat.
13:36Would you embrace a future
13:37where music is AI-generated,
13:39or would you hate to live in that world?
13:41Let us know in the comments.
13:43We have to figure out
13:44how to effectively partner
13:46to drive innovation
13:48to be able to adapt to new technology.
13:49We have to figure out how to do it.
13:50We have to figure out how to do it.
13:51We have to figure out how to do it.
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13:57We have to figure out how to do it.
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13:59We have to figure out how to do it.
14:00We have to figure out how to do it.
14:01We have to figure out how to do it.
14:02We have to figure out how to do it.
14:03We have to figure out how to do it.
14:04We have to figure out how to do it.
14:05We have to figure out how to do it.
14:06We have to figure out how to do it.