The latest trick from AI caused ripples in the pond of the music industry. Heart on My Sleeve, a fake collaborative track by rappers Drake and Weeknd, went viral shortly after its “release” on Spotify and social media. The song got more than 20 million views and listens on platforms such as TikTok and YouTube (the latter had the content deleted). Both Drake and Weeknd admitted they were not aware of the track’s existence.
Although it is not the first time that artificial intelligence played pranks on major artists, the latest manoeuvre reveals AI’s bigger capacity for voice cloning. The anonymous creator of the track, naming themselves Ghostwriter, left a message under the YouTube upload warning “this is just the beginning”. On Tik Tok, they stated: “I was a ghostwriter for years and got paid close to nothing for major labels to profit. The future is here.”
Speaking with The Telegraph, media analyst Mark Mulligan compared the rise of AI to the punk revolution of the 1970s. “This is like an electric guitar moment for Gen Z,” he said. Needless to say, the latest fake release will trigger further action from the major labels who have already attempted to prevent AI-generated music from distribution through streaming platforms.
The Music Void would like to talk to Ghostwriter to hear and their side of the story so we can present unbiased coverage and they can speak truth to power. Please feel free to contact us anonymously here.
