Google and Universal Music are currently in negotiations to reach a deal on licensing the voices and melodies of artists for AI-generated songs.
The discussions also involve the potential development of a tool for fans to create their own AI-generated songs, while ensuring that copyright owners are appropriately compensated. Artists would have the option to participate in this process.
According to the Financial Times, these talks are in the early stages and there are no immediate plans for a product launch.
These negotiations come in response to a recent trend where fans use AI programs to create deepfake music, imitating the voices and style of artists to make it appear as though they are singing other people’s songs or entirely new material.
Platforms like TikTok have seen numerous videos featuring convincingly mimicked AI-generated tracks of artists, often without the artists’ consent.
Earlier this year, a TikTok user posted a song with AI-generated vocals resembling those of Drake and the Weeknd. However, Universal Music Group removed the song from streaming services due to “infringing content with generative AI.”
The original TikTok video with the track “Heart on My Sleeve” gained 15 million views, and it was also shared on streaming platforms, accumulating 600,000 Spotify streams.
Drake, who has been a frequent target of deepfake songs, expressed frustration when an AI-generated recording of him rapping to an Ice Spice track surfaced.