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The record label representing Brit Award-winning singer Jorja Smith has stated its desire to claim a portion of earnings from a track it claims was created using an AI "clone" of the singer's distinctive vocal style.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK dance act Haven, achieved massive traction on TikTok last October, partly due to its smooth soul vocals by an unnamed woman singer.

Although its momentum and potential chart entry in the UK and US, the song was subsequently banned by leading streaming platforms after industry organizations issued copyright requests, alleging it breached intellectual property law by imitating another artist.

Even though 'I Run' has since been reissued with different singing, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it is convinced the initial version was made with AI trained on her extensive work and is now seeking appropriate redress.

A Broader Principle in Play

"The situation is not only about Jorja. It's bigger than a single performer or one song," the label stated in a recent announcement.

FAMM also expressed its belief that "both iterations of the song infringe on the artist's rights and unjustly benefit from the creative output of all the writers with whom she works."

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

Implying that her fans were potentially misled by Haven's first track, the label concluded: "Our industry cannot allow this to become the new normal."

Producers Admit Employing AI Tools

The team behind the track have publicly confirmed using AI in its production process.

Songwriter Harrison Walker clarified that the initial voice were actually his own but were extensively manipulated using music-generation software Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

Meanwhile, the second member, Waypoint, identified as Jacob Donaghue, confirmed on social media that AI was used to "apply our original vocal a feminine tone".

Donaghue and Walker maintain that they composed and produced the song themselves and have even shared files of their original production sessions.

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

"Being a songwriter and producer, I enjoy experimenting with innovative technologies, methods and staying on the cutting edge of what's happening," he continued.

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

Regulatory Gray Areas and Industry Impact

Although their first release of 'I Run' was suspended from major charts, the new version did enter the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has positioned the entire episode as a significant precedent for the music industry's evolving interaction with artificial intelligence.

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

"AI-generated material should be clearly identified as such so that the public may choose whether they listen to it or not," the message added.

Artists as 'Collateral Damage'

Smith shared her label's statement on her own Instagram profile.

The post warned that musicians and songwriters were turning into "collateral damage in the race by policymakers and tech firms towards AI supremacy".

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

"If we are successful in proving that AI helped to write the lyrics 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 pro-rata share," it explained.

The Ongoing Growth of AI Music

The proliferation of AI-generated music has been a topic of both interest and anxiety for the entertainment world.

• In the summer, the group Velvet Sundown accumulated millions of plays before disclosing they used AI to aid develop their sound.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" called Breaking Rust led a US country sales chart, demonstrating that listeners are not necessarily opposed to hearing AI-made music.
• Suno was last year taken to court for copyright infringement by the industry's major biggest record labels, but those legal actions have now been settled.

Following this, Warner Music established a partnership with the firm, which will allow users to generate songs using the vocal likenesses, names, and images of Warner acts who opt in to the service.

Yet, it is unclear how a large number of well-known musicians will consent to such applications of their identity.

Recently, a collective of renowned musicians such as Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album featuring tracks of silence or recordings of quiet studios in protest to potential changes to copyright law.

They contend these changes would make it simpler for AI companies to develop models using copyrighted work without securing a permission.