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The record label representing Brit Award-winning singer Jorja Smith has stated its intention to receive a portion of royalties from a track it asserts was produced using an AI "replica" of the singer's unique vocal style.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK electronic duo Haven, gained massive traction on TikTok last October, in part due to its smooth soul vocals by an unnamed female vocalist.

Although its success and potential chart position in the UK and US, the track was later banned by leading music services after industry organizations issued copyright requests, stating it breached copyright by imitating another musician.

Even though 'I Run' has since been re-released with different vocals, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it is convinced the original recording was generated with AI programmed on her body of work and is now pursuing appropriate compensation.

A Larger Issue at Stake

"The situation isn't just about one artist. It's bigger than one artist or a single track," the label stated in a recent announcement.

FAMM further expressed its belief that "each versions of the song violate Jorja's legal rights and unfairly take advantage of the work of all the writers with whom she collaborates."

Famous for hits like 'Be Honest' and 'Little Things', Smith was crowned British Female Solo Artist at the prestigious Brit Awards in 2019.

Implying that her supporters were potentially deceived by Haven's first release, the label concluded: "We cannot permit this to be the new normal."

Producers Admit Using AI Technology

The duo responsible for the song have publicly confirmed using AI during its production process.

Songwriter Harrison Walker explained that the initial vocals were actually his own but were heavily altered using music-generation platform Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

In addition, the other producer, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on social media that AI was used to "give our original vocal a feminine tone".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they wrote and produced the song themselves and have even shared evidence of their source computer files.

"It is no secret that I used AI-assisted vocal editing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker said.

"Being a songwriter and maker, I enjoy experimenting with new tools, techniques and remaining on the cutting edge of what's happening," he continued.

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

Legal Uncertainty and Broader Implications

While their first version of 'I Run' was blocked from major charts, the new recording managed to enter the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has framed the incident as a critical precedent for the music industry's changing interaction with artificial intelligence.

The label stated it had "a duty to voice concerns" and "encourage wider discussion", because AI is advancing at an "rapid rate and substantially exceeding legal oversight".

"AI-generated content should be transparently labelled as such so that the public may decide whether they listen to it or not," the message added.

Creators Become 'Unintended Damage'

Smith endorsed her label's position on her own social media page.

The text cautioned that musicians and songwriters were becoming "collateral damage in the competition by governments and corporations towards AI dominance".

It further noted that the label would distribute any potential songwriting credits with the writers behind Smith's music.

"Should we are successful in establishing that AI assisted to write the lyrics and melody in 'I Run' and are awarded a share of the song, we would aim to assign every one of Jorja's collaborators with a pro-rata share," it detailed.

The Ongoing Rise of AI Music

The emergence of AI-generated music has been a topic of both fascination and anxiety for the music industry.

• In June, the band Velvet Sundown gathered millions of streams before disclosing they used AI to help craft their sound.
• Recently, an AI-generated "artist" known as Breaking Rust topped a US country digital song sales chart, showing that audiences are not necessarily opposed to consuming AI-made music.
• Suno was previously sued for alleged violations by the industry's major largest record labels, though those legal actions have since been settled.

Following this, Warner Music established a collaboration with the firm, which will allow users to generate songs using the voices, names, and images of Warner acts who agree to the service.

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

Recently, a group of renowned musicians such as Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album containing silent songs or audio of quiet studios in protest to potential revisions to intellectual property regulations.

They argue these amendments would make it simpler for AI companies to train systems using copyrighted work without obtaining a permission.