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The music company representing Brit Award-winning singer Jorja Smith has declared its intention to receive a portion of earnings from a track it claims was produced using an artificial intelligence "clone" of the performer's distinctive vocal style.

The song, titled 'I Run' by British electronic duo Haven, achieved widespread popularity on TikTok last October, in part due to its smooth soul vocals by an unnamed woman vocalist.

Despite its momentum and potential top 40 position in both UK and US, the track was subsequently removed by leading music services after music organizations issued takedown requests, stating it breached intellectual property law by impersonating another musician.

Although 'I Run' has now been re-released with completely new vocals, Smith's label, FAMM, maintains it believes the initial recording was generated with AI trained on her extensive recordings and is now seeking appropriate compensation.

A Broader Principle in Play

"The situation isn't just about one artist. This is larger than one artist or one song," the label wrote in a recent announcement.

FAMM further stated its view that "both versions of the song violate the artist's legal rights and unfairly take advantage of the creative output of all the writers with whom she collaborates."

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 fans were potentially misled by Haven's first release, the label added: "We must not permit this to be the new normal."

Producers Acknowledge Using AI Technology

The team behind the song have publicly confirmed utilizing AI during its creation.

Songwriter Harrison Walker clarified that the original vocals were in fact his own but were extensively altered using AI music software Suno, often referred to as the "ChatGPT for music".

In addition, the second member, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on social media that AI was used to "give our starting vocal a female tone".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and produced the music themselves and have even provided files of their source production sessions.

"It shouldn't be mystery that I used AI-powered vocal editing to transform exclusively my voice for 'I Run'," Walker said.

"As a creator and producer, I like experimenting with innovative technologies, methods and remaining on the cutting edge of what's happening," he continued.

"To set the record clear, the people behind HAVEN are actual and human, and all we aim to do is make enjoyable music for other humans."

Regulatory Gray Areas and Broader Implications

While their original release of 'I Run' was blocked from major rankings, the new version did enter the UK Top 40 recently.

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

The label stated it had "an obligation to speak up" and "encourage public discourse", because AI is advancing at an "alarming rate and significantly exceeding legal oversight".

"Computer-created material should be transparently labelled as such so that the audience may choose whether they listen to it or not," the statement added.

Artists as 'Collateral Victims'

Smith endorsed her label's statement on her personal Instagram page.

The text cautioned that musicians and songwriters were becoming "collateral damage in the race by policymakers and corporations towards AI supremacy".

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

"If we are successful 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 every one of Jorja's co-writers with a pro-rata share," it explained.

The Continuing Rise of Computer-Generated Music

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

• In the summer, the band Velvet Sundown gathered millions of plays before disclosing they used AI to help develop their musical style.
• Last month, an AI-generated "artist" known as Breaking Rust led a US country sales chart, demonstrating that listeners are not always opposed to consuming computer-generated music.
• Suno was last year sued for alleged violations by the world's three largest record labels, but those cases have since been resolved.

Subsequently, Warner Music entered into a collaboration with the company, which will enable users to create songs using the voices, names, and likenesses of Warner artists who agree to the program.

Yet, it remains uncertain how many established musicians will agree to such uses of their identity.

Just last week, a group of prominent artists such as Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album containing silent songs or audio of empty studios in protest to proposed changes to copyright law.

They argue these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to develop systems using copyrighted work without securing a license.