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The record label representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its intention to claim a portion of earnings from a song it asserts was created using an AI "replica" of the singer's unique vocal style.

The song, titled 'I Run' by British dance act Haven, achieved massive traction on social media last October, in part due to its polished R&B vocals by an uncredited female singer.

Despite its momentum and impending top 40 entry in both UK and US, the track was later removed by leading streaming platforms after music bodies sent takedown notices, stating it breached intellectual property law by impersonating another artist.

Although 'I Run' has now been re-released with different singing, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it believes the initial version was generated with AI programmed on her extensive recordings and is now pursuing appropriate redress.

A Larger Issue in Play

"This is not only about one artist. This is bigger than one artist or one song," the label stated in a recent announcement.

FAMM also stated its belief that "each iterations of the track infringe on the artist's legal rights and unfairly benefit from the creative output of all the songwriters with whom she collaborates."

Famous for hits like 'Be Honest' and 'Little Things', Smith was named Best British Female at the annual Brit Awards in 2019.

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

Creators Admit Using AI Tools

The duo behind the track have openly admitted utilizing AI during its production process.

Songwriter Harrison Walker explained that the original voice were actually his own but were extensively manipulated using music-generation platform Suno, sometimes called the "advanced tool for music".

Meanwhile, the other member, Waypoint, whose real name is Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on his accounts that AI was used to "apply our original vocal a feminine tone".

Donaghue and Walker assert that they wrote and produced the song themselves and have even provided files of their source computer files.

"This is no mystery that I used AI-powered vocal processing to transform exclusively my voice for 'I Run'," Walker elaborated.

"As a songwriter and maker, I like using innovative technologies, methods and remaining on the forefront of industry trends," he continued.

"In order to set the facts straight, the artists behind HAVEN are real and people, and all we want to do is make great music for fellow humans."

Legal Gray Areas and Broader Impact

Although their first version of 'I Run' was suspended from official charts, the new version did break into the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has positioned the incident as a critical precedent for the music industry's changing interaction with AI.

The label stated it had "a duty to speak up" and "encourage public discourse", because AI is advancing at an "rapid rate and significantly outpacing legal oversight".

"Computer-created content should be transparently labelled as such so that the public may choose whether they consume it or not," the message continued.

Creators Become 'Unintended Damage'

Smith endorsed her label's position on her own Instagram profile.

The text warned that artists and creators were becoming "unintended casualties in the competition by policymakers and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

It also stated that the label would distribute any awarded royalties with the writers behind Smith's catalogue.

"Should we are able in proving that AI helped to compose the lyrics and tune in 'I Run' and are awarded a share of the song, we would seek to allocate each of Jorja's collaborators with a corresponding share," it detailed.

The Continuing Rise of Computer-Generated Music

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

• In the summer, the group Velvet Sundown gathered vast numbers of plays before revealing they used AI to aid develop their sound.
• Recently, an AI-generated "performer" called Breaking Rust topped a US country digital song sales chart, showing that listeners are not always opposed to hearing AI-made music.
• Suno was last year sued for alleged violations by the world's major biggest record labels, though those legal actions have since been settled.

Following this, 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 service.

However, it remains unclear how many established artists will consent to such uses of their identity.

Just last week, a collective of renowned musicians such as Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album containing silent songs or recordings of quiet studios in protest to proposed changes to intellectual property regulations.

They argue these changes would make it easier for AI companies to develop models using protected work without securing a permission.