Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are expressed solely by Patrick McAndrew and do not necessarily reflect those of any organizations or affiliations he is associated with.

Fake Hits, Real Damage: How AI-Generated Songs Are Stealing the Spotlight

A Journey with Music

Back in 2019, I began writing a brand-new musical called The Startup. I spent the better part of a year writing the script for the show (or “book” for you musical lovers) as well as lyrics, meticulously parsing out rhyme and rhythm. I’ll never forget when I began writing the music. I sat down at my desk, with a pencil and staffed paper, wrote in a couple of the notes that I had in my head and, it was shortly after this that I realized, “I’m going to need some serious help.” 

While I’ve been a musician and actor for many years now, I’ve never seen myself as much of a musical theatre composer. But as I wanted to explore the world of social media, influencer culture, data privacy, AI, and other emerging tech concerns through theatre, I thought a musical would be a powerful way to share this story with a wider audience. Thankfully, I didn’t give myself an aneurysm trying to compose a libretto by my lonesome. My good friend, Kevin, who is a wickedly talented composer, came on board this windy journey to create the musical with me. We came against our fair share of difficulties, struggles, and battle wounds while composing the music for The Startup, but we’ve come out the other end immensely proud of the work we’ve accomplished and, if I do say so myself, with some bangin’ songs. The Startup will be mounting its first staged production in Spring 2026 in New York City, due to the collective efforts of incredibly talented and dedicated artists, singers, and musicians. 

Music is Essential for our Soul 

The experience of writing a musical, or any music for that matter, is something you’d never want to take away from someone. The art of creating music is instinctually human and connects people and communities at a variety of levels. Everything from stress reduction and cognitive benefits to cardiovascular health, making music is good for our minds, bodies, and souls. So, what does it mean for the future of musicians and music in general when scammers are creating AI-generated tracks that are making millions on Apple Podcasts and Spotify with little to no repercussions? Oh yeah, and the scammers are often labeling their AI-generated music as belonging to famous and reputable musicians, artists who took years to master their crafts? 

AI Grabbing the Mic 

This is becoming more and more common. In one instance, an anonymous creator used AI to clone Drake’s and The Weeknd’s voices. The song went viral on TikTok with about 15M views and streaming roughly 600k Spotify plays. Universal Music Group removed it from Spotify/YouTube, condemning it as “infringing content created with generative AI.” 

In another case, AI-generated “covers” of new Beyoncé country singles (“Texas Hold ’Em” and “16 Carriages”) were made to sound like Miley Cyrus. These fake tracks quickly racked up 1.2 million YouTube views. Their popularity underscored the industry’s concern over AI deepfakes: Sony (Beyoncé’s label) testified that it had issued roughly 10,000 takedown notices for unauthorized AI music. 

And this is just the famous artists! Imagine the damage that AI-generated music can do when stealing the works of someone just starting out, or even an established musician who might have a smaller following? If not handled appropriately, this can end careers and completely uproot the lifestyles of singers, songwriters, and musicians across the world. While I believe strongly that artists will always create because it’s in our nature, the profits of our labor shouldn’t be going to AI companies stealing copyrighted works. Rather, it should go to the artists. It seems so simple, doesn’t it? 

Why We Need AI Guardrails in the Music Industry 

As AI continues to advance, it’s becoming more and more urgent to establish leading AI standards for not only the music industry, but for the entertainment industry as a whole. There is a critical need for responsible AI governance across all creative industries. Here are just a few examples of issues that need to be addressed by actionable guardrails:

Copyright & IP Gaps: Current law does not protect an artist’s voice, so AI clones can slip through copyright. Record labels note these incidents “demonstrate why platforms have a responsibility to prevent use of [their] services in ways that harm artists.” Industry groups like RIAA and SAG-AFTRA as well as emerging state laws (e.g. Tennessee’s new “ELVIS Act”) now push for consent/rights-of-publicity rules to fill this gap, but more still needs to be done.

Consent & Publicity Rights: Artists and lawmakers stress the need for permission. As Sen. Chris Coons said, “everyone deserves the right to own and protect their voice and likeness.” Proposals like the federal NO FAKES Act would ban unconsented AI imitations of real people. The Human Artistry campaign similarly calls for clear guidelines: obtain permission before using someone’s voice, credit creators, and ensure fair pay.

Platform Policies & Labeling: Streaming and social platforms are updating rules. Spotify now prohibits mimicry of real artists and has removed known AI fakes. YouTube requires creators to tag AI-altered content (e.g. cloned voices). However, enforcement is uneven and often relies on user reports. Clear provenance labeling (watermarks/metadata) is needed so listeners know when a song is AI-generated.

Protecting Artists & Consumers: These incidents risk diverting revenue and confusing fans (imagine thinking Drake lost his touch after an AI flop). They also pose reputational harms (artists’ voices used in unsanctioned or hateful content). Responsible AI guardrails, from robust copyright safeguards to mandatory AI-content disclosure, are seen as essential to ensure technology empowers rather than undermines human creators.

 Why Humanity Must Remain Central to Making Music

There is A LOT of work to be done within the music industry to prevent AI companies from stealing copyrighted material. Responsible AI is imperative as a first step in designing models and guaranteeing that the data the models are being trained on is clean and not scraped from unsolicited sources. We are all trying to figure out how this technology works, what risks are involved, and how it may even be able to enhance our creativity.

Like it or not, AI-generated music isn’t going away, but how we respond to it matters. If you care about the future of music, you can take action by supporting legislation like the NO FAKES Act. Choose platforms that transparently label AI-generated content so you know who, or what, you’re listening to. And most importantly, stand with artist-led coalitions like the Future of Entertainment Alliance, fighting for fair pay, digital rights, and creative ownership in an evolving industry. The tools are powerful, but people still matter most. 

Music is a beautiful creative process that sometimes strikes like lightning when you are creating it and, at the same time, takes years to master. While AI-generated music is all about the destination, human-generated music is often more about the journey, both the journey of creating the music and then the audience experiencing said music. AI executives like the guy from Suno AI saying that people don’t enjoy making music are a bit out of touch and is reflective of someone who may have picked up a guitar a couple of times but got bored. Sure, most people do not devote their life to making music. Many people don’t play a musical instrument. But I think we can all agree that most of humanity has a deep appreciation for music, the energy it provides us, and the sense of community it creates. AI is going to try to do many things in the coming years and it’s going to do many things very well. It will be used as a helpful tool in music production going forward. But music will always be central to humanity and we need to make sure that remains the case.

About The Author:

Patrick is a responsible AI strategist, writer, and actor based in New York City. He is the Founder of the Future of Entertainment Alliance, a new initiative that advocates for human creativity in entertainment as emerging technologies like AI continue to revolutionize the industry. Patrick’s work focuses on the benefits of implementing responsible AI practices with expertise in entertainment and media. He currently works on the responsible AI team at HCLTech and has worked for the Responsible AI Institute and the Entertainment Community Fund.