Google and Common Music would possibly license artists' voices for AI-generated music

Google and Common Music Group (UMG) are reportedly engaged on a partnership to license artists’ voices for AI-generated music.

In response to the Monetary Instances, an settlement is within the works the place Google would pay the file label large licensing charges in order that customers can use AI to generate new songs with musicians’ voices and melodies. The dialogue is in its early phases, however “the aim is to develop a software for followers to create these monitor legitimately, and pay the house owners of the copyrights for it,” stated the FT, including that artists would have “the selection to choose in.” The FT stated Warner Music can be in talks with Google about an AI music software.

The rise of audio deepfakes along with generative AI has raised considerations throughout the music business about possession and reputational hurt. Earlier this 12 months a convincing deepfake of an AI-generated tune with Drake and The Weeknd went viral for recreating their voices and musical fashion with out their consent. The tune was quickly pulled from streaming platforms like YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music for copyright infringement. On the time, UMG, which represents Drake, condemned the deepfake in a press release to Billboard saying such songs “show why platforms have a elementary authorized and moral accountability to forestall the usage of their companies in ways in which hurt artists.”

Now, it appears UMG is engaged on a method to legally allow the usage of its artists’ livelihood. However questions stay about how such an settlement would defend their repute and whether or not artists would revenue from licensing income. Drake and different musicians have spoken out in opposition to the usage of AI to recreate their voices. However some musicians, like Grimes are embracing the usage of generative AI as a method to collaborate with followers, by permitting individuals to make use of her voice and break up the royalties.

Such licensing agreements would resolve the authorized situation of AI-generated songs, however that also leaves the murky moral situation that’s changing into more and more untenable in leisure industries. Creator Jane Friedman lately found a number of books falsely written beneath her title on Amazon which are believed to be AI-generated. The continuing SAG-AFTRA strike was partly triggered by a proposal from studios to make use of AI-generated likenesses of background actors.