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The music company representing award-winning artist Jorja Smith has declared its intention to receive a share of royalties from a song it asserts was produced using an artificial intelligence "clone" of the singer's unique voice.

The song, titled 'I Run' by British electronic duo Haven, achieved massive popularity on TikTok in October, in part due to its smooth R&B vocals by an uncredited woman vocalist.

Despite its momentum and potential top 40 entry in both UK and US, the song was later banned by leading streaming platforms after music bodies sent takedown requests, alleging it violated copyright by impersonating another musician.

Although 'I Run' has now been reissued with different singing, Smith's label, FAMM, maintains it is convinced the initial recording was generated with AI trained on her extensive recordings and is now seeking appropriate compensation.

A Broader Principle at Stake

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

FAMM further expressed its view that "both iterations of the song violate the artist's legal rights and unjustly take advantage of the work of all the writers with whom she works."

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

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

Producers Acknowledge Using AI Tools

The duo behind the track have openly confirmed utilizing AI during its creation.

Songwriter Harrison Walker clarified that the initial voice were actually his own but were heavily altered using AI music software Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

In addition, the second producer, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on his accounts that AI was used to "give our starting vocal a feminine quality".

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

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

"Being a songwriter and maker, I like using new tools, methods and staying on the forefront of industry trends," he added.

"In order to set the facts straight, the people behind HAVEN are actual and people, and all we aim to do is make great music for other humans."

Regulatory Uncertainty and Industry Implications

Although their first release of 'I Run' was suspended from official rankings, the new recording did enter the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has framed the incident as a critical test case for the entertainment sector's evolving interaction with artificial intelligence.

The label argued it had "an obligation to speak up" and "stimulate wider discussion", because AI is advancing at an "rapid rate and substantially exceeding legal oversight".

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

Creators Become 'Collateral Victims'

Smith endorsed her label's position on her personal social media profile.

The post warned that artists and songwriters were turning into "collateral damage in the competition by governments and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

It also noted that the label would distribute any awarded songwriting credits with the writers behind Smith's music.

"Should we are able in establishing that AI helped to write the lyrics and melody in 'I Run' and are granted a portion of the song, we would aim to assign each of Jorja's collaborators with a corresponding share," it explained.

The Ongoing Rise of Computer-Generated Music

The proliferation of AI-generated music has been a topic of both fascination and consternation for the music industry.

• In the summer, the band Velvet Sundown accumulated millions of plays before revealing they used AI to help develop their sound.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" known as Breaking Rust topped a US genre sales chart, demonstrating that listeners are not always opposed to consuming computer-generated music.
• Suno was last year sued for copyright infringement by the industry's major biggest record labels, but those cases 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 opt in to the service.

Yet, it is unclear how many well-known musicians will agree to such uses of their work.

Recently, a collective of prominent musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album containing silent songs or recordings of empty studios in opposition to proposed revisions to copyright law.

They contend these amendments would make it easier for AI companies to develop systems using copyrighted work without securing a permission.