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The music company representing Brit Award-winning artist Jorja Smith has declared its intention to claim a portion of royalties from a track it asserts was produced using an artificial intelligence "clone" of the singer's distinctive voice.

The song, titled 'I Run' by British electronic duo Haven, achieved widespread traction on social media in October, partly due to its smooth R&B singing by an uncredited female vocalist.

Although its momentum and potential chart position in the UK and US, the song was subsequently banned by major streaming platforms after music organizations sent takedown notices, alleging it violated intellectual property law by imitating another artist.

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

A Larger Principle at Stake

"The situation is not only about one artist. This is bigger than a single performer or one song," the label wrote in a recent announcement.

FAMM also stated its belief that "both versions of the song infringe on Jorja's rights and unfairly take advantage of the creative output of all the writers with whom she works."

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

Suggesting that her fans were possibly misled by Haven's original release, the label concluded: "Our industry must not allow this to become the standard practice."

Producers Acknowledge Using AI Tools

The duo responsible for the track have publicly confirmed utilizing AI in its creation.

Songwriter Harrison Walker clarified that the original voice were actually his own but were heavily manipulated using AI music platform Suno, sometimes referred to as the "ChatGPT for music".

In addition, the other producer, Waypoint, whose real name is Jacob Donaghue, stated on social media that AI was used to "give our original vocal a feminine quality".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and produced the music themselves and have even shared files of their original computer files.

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

"As a songwriter and producer, I like using innovative technologies, techniques and staying on the forefront of what's happening," he added.

"To set the record straight, the people behind HAVEN are real and human, and all we aim to do is make enjoyable music for fellow humans."

Regulatory Gray Areas and Broader Implications

Although their first release of 'I Run' was blocked from official rankings, the new version did enter the UK Top 40 last week.

FAMM has framed the incident as a critical precedent for the entertainment sector's evolving relationship with artificial intelligence.

The label argued it had "a duty to voice concerns" and "encourage public discourse", because AI is proliferating at an "rapid rate and significantly exceeding regulation".

"Computer-created content should be transparently labelled as such so that the public may choose whether they listen to it or not," the statement added.

Creators Become 'Collateral Victims'

Smith shared her label's position on her personal Instagram profile.

The text cautioned that artists and songwriters were turning into "collateral damage in the race by policymakers and corporations towards AI supremacy".

It further stated that the label would distribute any awarded songwriting credits with the collaborators behind Smith's catalogue.

"Should we are able in proving that AI helped to compose the words and melody in 'I Run' and are awarded a share of the song, we would aim to allocate every one of Jorja's co-writers with a corresponding share," it explained.

The Ongoing Rise of AI Music

The emergence of algorithmically created music has been a topic of both interest and anxiety for the music industry.

• In the summer, the band Velvet Sundown accumulated vast numbers of streams before revealing they used AI to aid craft their sound.
• Last month, an AI-generated "artist" known as Breaking Rust led a US genre digital song sales chart, demonstrating that listeners are not necessarily opposed to hearing computer-generated music.
• Suno was previously taken to court for copyright infringement by the world's major largest record labels, though those legal actions have now been resolved.

Subsequently, Warner Music entered into a partnership with the firm, which will enable users to generate songs using the vocal likenesses, names, and likenesses of Warner acts who agree to the program.

Yet, it is uncertain how many established artists will consent to such uses of their identity.

Just last week, a collective of prominent musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album featuring tracks of silence or audio of empty studios in opposition to proposed changes to copyright law.

They contend these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to train models using protected work without obtaining a license.