A step in the right direction.
Whether we like it or not, it’s become increasingly clear that artificial intelligence — specifically when it comes to generative AI in music — is here to stay. Of course, this is hardly a dismissal of the very real issue of AI “artists” not only stealing both streams and intellectual property from actual, human artists. With that being said, however, its an issue that we’re going to have to deal with (and actively protest) for the foreseeable future until restrictions can be made and legislature can be signed to limit it.
Unfortunately, it seems as if that’s a long ways away at the time being. And despite calls from nearly every artist in existence, highlighted by a 200+ person letter signed by the Artist Rights Alliance which includes the likes of Billie Elish, Jon Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder, Rosanne Cash, Kacey Musgraves, Chappell Roan and many more all the way back in April of 2024, we’ve seen bad actors profitting off of AI-generated music for the better part of a year at this point.
This was highlighted most notably back in October when a completely AI-generated “artist” going by the name of Breaking Rust, captured the #1 spot on a Billboard country chart. Given that this was the first primary instance of a completely AI-generated song going #1 on any major Billboard chart, it caused quite the validated stir in the music community. Our very own Aaron Ryan, who broke the story here at Whiskey Riff, ended up appearing on NPR’s podcast to explain the whole ordeal.
It doesn’t just stop at Breaking Rust, however. Since then, there have been multiple AI songs and “artists” who have charted on multiple different Billboard charts, most notably (and terrifyingly) the AI gospel “artist,” Xania Monet, who was created Mississippi-based songwriter Telisha “Nikki” Jones, climbed Billbord’s Hot Gospel Songs to #3 with “Let Go, Let Go” and Hot R&B Songs to #20 with “How Was I Supposed to Know?”
Taking a look at iTunes’ all-genre charts is even more sobering and concerning. As of writing, three of the Top 10 songs are made by AI-generated “artists,” with two by Eddie Dalton and one by Jada Monroe. Another “artist” by the name of Josh Fawaz slots in at #13. He, of course, is also completely AI.
As you can tell, the AI epidemic infiltrating music is very real and very concerning. For all its flaws, Spotify is at least introducing a new system to help listeners discern what is and isn’t AI and further promote real, human artists.
Just announced today, Spotify is introducing “Verified by Spotify,” which is a badge similar to those used by social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X (formerly Twitter). Here, however, instead of verifying whether an account is a celebrity or public figure, Spotify is verifying whether an artist is actually human or not (which is a ridiculous concept to even think about).
In order to make this happen, Spotify will be a plethora of different features in order to sort out who is and isn’t a real, human artist. These include their SongDNA feature, which include composers, writers, producers and more of each real song as well as their newly-introduced “AI credits” feature, which attempts to force AI-generated “artists” to label themselves as such.
As Spotify themselves put it, they’re introducing this system for listeners and consumers to trust the authenticity of music on the platform:
“Music is evolving, and so are the ways you discover and connect with artists. In the AI era, it’s more important than ever to be able to trust the authenticity of the music you listen to. At Spotify, our focus is providing you with more context about artists and their music, so you can build more meaningful connections with them.”
As of now, the system is still in its beta stage but will be appearing in the “coming weeks.” When the system officially launches, Spotify is promising that “more than 99%” of the artists Spotify users actively search for will be verified, which should represent hundreds of thousands of artists, according to the platform.
While it would obviously be much better to simply remove any AI-generated “artists” and songs off the platform entirely, it’s at least a step in the right direction from the #1 streaming service worldwide. At this point, there’s no stopping the AI craze currently sweeping the nation and the world right now. And until we put hard and fast rules on AI generation as a whole in the arts, this is one of the most sensible options to steer the masses away from stolen “art” and back towards real, human artists.
