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The record label representing Brit Award-winning artist Jorja Smith has stated its desire to claim a share of royalties from a track it asserts was created using an artificial intelligence "replica" of the performer's unique voice.

The track, titled 'I Run' by UK dance act Haven, achieved massive popularity on social media last October, partly due to its polished R&B vocals by an uncredited woman vocalist.

Despite its success and potential top 40 position in the UK and US, the song was later banned by leading music services after music organizations issued copyright notices, stating it violated copyright by impersonating another artist.

Although 'I Run' has now been reissued with completely new singing, Smith's label, FAMM, insists it is convinced the original recording was made with AI trained on her body of recordings and is now seeking financial compensation.

A Larger Issue at Stake

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

FAMM further expressed its view that "each iterations of the track violate 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 potentially misled by Haven's original release, the label added: "We cannot permit this to become the standard practice."

Producers Acknowledge Employing AI Technology

The duo behind the song have publicly confirmed using AI during its production process.

Producer Harrison Walker clarified that the initial vocals were in fact his own but were heavily altered using music-generation platform Suno, often called the "advanced tool for music".

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

Donaghue and Walker assert that they wrote and produced the music themselves and have even shared files of their source production sessions.

"This shouldn't be secret that I used AI-assisted vocal processing to transform solely my voice for 'I Run'," Walker elaborated.

"Being a creator and maker, I enjoy using innovative technologies, methods and remaining on the cutting edge of industry trends," he continued.

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

Regulatory Uncertainty and Broader Implications

Although their original release of 'I Run' was blocked from official charts, the new version did break into the UK Top 40 recently.

FAMM has positioned the entire episode as a significant precedent for the entertainment sector's evolving relationship with artificial intelligence.

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

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

Creators Become 'Unintended Victims'

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

The text cautioned that musicians and songwriters were turning into "collateral damage in the competition by policymakers and corporations towards AI dominance".

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

"Should we are successful in establishing that AI assisted to compose the words and tune in 'I Run' and are granted a share of the song, we would aim to assign each of Jorja's co-writers with a corresponding share," it detailed.

The Ongoing Growth of Computer-Generated Music

The emergence of algorithmically created music has been a source of both interest and anxiety for the entertainment world.

• In the summer, the group Velvet Sundown gathered millions of streams before disclosing they used AI to help develop their musical style.
• Last month, an AI-generated "performer" called Breaking Rust led a US genre digital song sales chart, showing that listeners are not necessarily averse to consuming AI-made music.
• Suno was last year taken to court for copyright infringement by the industry's three biggest record labels, though those legal actions have now been resolved.

Following this, Warner Music entered into a partnership with the company, which will allow users to create songs using the voices, names, and images of Warner acts who opt in to the program.

Yet, it remains uncertain how many well-known musicians will agree to such uses of their identity.

Recently, a group of prominent musicians including Sir Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush released a vinyl album featuring silent songs or recordings of quiet studios in opposition to potential changes to intellectual property regulations.

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