AI-Generated Tracks Made By Humans Are Eligible for Grammys, Recording Academy CEO says
Back in June, Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, said in a interview with grammy.com that AI tracks generated by humans will be eligible for Grammy consideration. Mason Jr. emphasized, multiple times, that tracks solely generated from an AI program would not be eligible, and that any song that won using A.I. technology would be credited to the human creatives behind the music, not the people they choose to imitate. “If there's an AI voice singing the song or AI instrumentation, we'll consider it. But in a songwriting-based category, it has to have been written mostly by a human” Mason Jr. said in the interview. Mostly by a human?
This means that the AI-generated Drake track “Heart On My Sleeve” from ghostwriter is eligible from Grammy consideration (and fun fact, it’s already been submitted). When it initially debuted, it caused a firestorm amongst the music community. From bedroom artists to major labels, there were questions. If AI can do this, what else are bedroom artists capable of? How does Drake’s label handle this? What does Drake think?
At first, it was met with a slew of takedowns from every DSP that it was featured on, almost like it was a disease. Now? It can be considered among the best songs released at the biggest award show for music. Why? When it debuted, it was a Wild West moment and nobody had any idea what to do or what precedent to follow. After making the safe decisions, now the powers at be have a foothold on the situation and are looking to make the biggest bang for their brand.
Mason Jr. deemed it “unacceptable” to not address the AI elephant in the room, but after an incredibly tumultuous year involved human intellectual property rights and AI (SAG-AFTRA is still on strike), this is another step in the wrong direction.
Something interesting I found through the course of this story was that Mason Jr. actually reached out to ghostwriter on social media to have a conversation surrounding the song and it’s controversy.
Harvey, get at me baby. Let’s have a conversation.
Sourceshttps://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2023/09/07/drake-the-weeknd-mash-up-submitted-for-grammy/
