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Artists Unite Against AI Devaluation of Music
Multiple prominent figures in the music industry, including the likes of Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Billie Eilish, Camila Cabello, and over 200 others, have come together to sign a powerful open letter. Their message is a call for tech companies, AI developers, and music platforms to commit to refraining from utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) to train their models or produce music.
Additionally, renowned artists such as R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Q-tip, Darius Rucker, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, and even the estates of legends like Frank Sinatra and Bob Marley have also signed the letter. The language within the letter is emotionally charged, featuring words like “sabotage” and “predatory.” There is a clear, specific request directed to the tech industry as a whole.
The Stance Against AI in the Music Industry
We, the undersigned members of the artist and songwriting communities, call on AI developers, technology companies, platforms, and digital music services to cease the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to infringe upon and devalue the rights of human artists.
This isn’t the first instance of artists raising concerns about the use of AI by tech companies. Universal Music Group, representing artists such as Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny, has engaged in disputes with TikTok over tools developed for AI-generated music. UMG expressed in their own open letter that these actions amounted to nothing less than the sponsorship of artist replacement by AI, leading to UMG withdrawing its music from the platform.
Make no mistake: We believe that, when used responsibly, AI holds immense potential to enhance human creativity and facilitate the creation of new and thrilling experiences for music enthusiasts worldwide.
Indeed, AI is playing a role in making music creation more accessible, benefiting individuals with disabilities by enabling them to engage with musical instruments they might otherwise struggle to use.
Unfortunately, some platforms and developers are misusing AI to stifle creativity and undercut artists, songwriters, musicians, and rights holders. When employed irresponsibly, AI poses significant threats to our ability to safeguard our privacy, identities, music, and livelihoods.
In 2023, music publishers Universal Music Group, ABKCO, and Concord Music took legal action against the AI company Anthropic for utilizing song lyrics from their artists to train its chatbot Claude. This move was a direct response to the concern that unchecked AI deployment could lead to a devaluation of artists’ work and hinder fair compensation.
Unchecked, AI will set in motion a race to the bottom that will degrade the value of our work and prevent us from being fairly compensated for it. This assault on human creativity must be stopped.
We must protect against the predatory use of AI to steal professional artists’ voices and likenesses, violate creators’ rights, and disrupt the music ecosystem. We call on all AI developers, technology companies, platforms, and digital music services to commit to not developing or deploying AI-generated music technology, content, or tools that undermine or replace the artistic endeavors of songwriters and artists or deny us fair compensation for our work.
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