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The record label representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has declared its intention to claim a share of earnings from a song it claims was created using an artificial intelligence "replica" of the performer's unique voice.

The song, titled 'I Run' by UK dance act Haven, achieved widespread traction on TikTok last October, partly due to its polished soul vocals by an unnamed female singer.

Despite its success and potential top 40 position in both UK and US, the song was subsequently removed by leading streaming platforms after music bodies sent takedown notices, alleging it breached copyright by imitating another artist.

Although 'I Run' has now been re-released with completely new vocals, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it is convinced the initial version was made with AI programmed on her extensive recordings and is now pursuing financial compensation.

A Larger Issue in Play

"This isn't just about Jorja. It's larger than a single performer or one song," the label wrote in a public announcement.

FAMM further stated its view that "each iterations of the song violate the artist's legal rights and unjustly benefit from the work of all the songwriters with whom she collaborates."

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

Suggesting that her fans were potentially deceived by Haven's original release, the label concluded: "We must not allow this to be the new normal."

Producers Acknowledge Using AI Technology

The duo responsible for the song have openly admitted utilizing AI in its creation.

Producer Harrison Walker explained that the initial voice were in fact his own but were heavily manipulated using AI music software Suno, often called the "ChatGPT for music".

Meanwhile, the other member, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, stated on his accounts that AI was used to "give our original vocal a female quality".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and created the music themselves and have even shared evidence of their source computer files.

"It shouldn't be mystery that I used AI-powered vocal processing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker said.

"As a creator and producer, I enjoy experimenting with new tools, methods and remaining on the cutting edge of industry trends," he continued.

"In order to set the record clear, the people behind HAVEN are actual and human, and all we want to do is make enjoyable music for fellow humans."

Legal Uncertainty and Industry Impact

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

FAMM has framed the incident as a critical test case for the music industry's changing relationship with artificial intelligence.

The label stated it had "a duty to voice concerns" and "stimulate public discourse", because AI is proliferating at an "rapid rate and substantially outpacing legal oversight".

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

Creators Become 'Unintended Victims'

Smith endorsed her label's statement on her own social media profile.

The post cautioned that musicians and creators were becoming "unintended casualties in the race by policymakers and tech firms towards AI dominance".

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

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

The Continuing Growth of Computer-Generated Music

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

• In June, the band Velvet Sundown gathered millions of plays before disclosing they used AI to help develop their musical style.
• Last month, an AI-generated "artist" called Breaking Rust led a US genre sales chart, showing that audiences are not always opposed to hearing computer-generated music.
• Suno was last year taken to court for copyright infringement by the world's three biggest record labels, but those cases have now been settled.

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

However, it remains unclear how many well-known artists will agree to such uses of their work.

Recently, a collective of renowned artists including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush issued a vinyl album featuring silent songs or recordings of empty studios in protest to potential changes to copyright law.

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