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The record label representing Brit Award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its desire to claim a portion of royalties from a track it asserts was produced using an AI "clone" of the performer's distinctive vocal style.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK electronic duo Haven, achieved massive popularity on social media in October, in part due to its polished soul vocals by an uncredited female vocalist.

Although its success and impending top 40 position in the UK and US, the song was later removed by major streaming platforms after industry organizations issued copyright notices, stating it breached copyright by imitating another artist.

Even though 'I Run' has now been re-released with completely new singing, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it believes the original version was made with AI trained on her body of recordings and is now pursuing financial compensation.

A Larger Issue in Play

"This is not only about one artist. It's larger than a single performer or a single track," the label wrote in a recent announcement.

FAMM further expressed its belief that "each iterations of the track infringe on the artist's rights and unfairly take advantage of the creative output of all the writers with whom she collaborates."

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

Implying that her fans were possibly misled by Haven's first release, the label added: "We must not allow this to be the new normal."

Producers Acknowledge Using AI Tools

The duo responsible for the track have openly admitted using AI in its creation.

Producer Harrison Walker clarified that the original vocals were actually his own but were extensively manipulated using AI music software Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

In addition, the second producer, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, stated on social media that AI was used to "apply our starting vocal a feminine tone".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and created the music themselves and have even provided files of their source production sessions.

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

"Being a creator and maker, I like using new tools, techniques and remaining on the forefront of industry trends," he continued.

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

Regulatory Uncertainty and Broader Implications

Although their first release of 'I Run' was blocked from major rankings, the new recording managed to break into the UK Top 40 last week.

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

The label stated it had "an obligation to voice concerns" and "encourage public discourse", because AI is proliferating at an "rapid rate and significantly outpacing legal oversight".

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

Artists as 'Unintended Victims'

Smith shared her label's statement on her personal social media page.

The post warned that artists and songwriters were becoming "unintended casualties in the competition by governments and tech firms towards AI dominance".

It further stated that the label would distribute any potential royalties with the collaborators behind Smith's catalogue.

"Should we are successful in establishing that AI helped to compose the words and melody in 'I Run' and are awarded a share of the song, we would seek to assign every one of Jorja's collaborators with a corresponding share," it explained.

The Continuing Growth of AI Music

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

• In June, the band Velvet Sundown accumulated millions of streams before disclosing they used AI to help craft their musical style.
• Recently, an AI-generated "artist" known as Breaking Rust topped a US genre digital song sales chart, demonstrating that audiences are not always opposed to consuming computer-generated music.
• Suno was previously taken to court for copyright infringement by the world's three largest record labels, though those cases have now been settled.

Subsequently, Warner Music entered into a collaboration with the firm, which will allow users to generate songs using the vocal likenesses, names, and images of Warner artists who agree to the service.

Yet, it is unclear how a large number of established musicians will agree to such uses of their work.

Recently, a group of renowned musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album containing tracks of silence or audio of empty studios in opposition to potential changes to copyright law.

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