AI Music Invasion: Fake Bands and Songs Are Taking Over Spotify & YouTube

According to researchers, the number of AI-generated fake bands and songs has been rapidly increasing recently, making it progressively harder to determine if music was created by a real human.

As AI continues to advance, its use in the music industry has become widespread. We’re now observing a significant rise in the number of AI-created music tracks not produced by humans. Platforms like YouTube and Spotify are seeing a considerable increase in such music.

For example, a channel featured a video around the end of last year for an album called “Rumba Congo” by a group named “Concubanas,” supposedly released in 1974. What’s more, it garnered 1.4 million views. However, neither this album nor this group is real. As stated in the video’s description, both the group and the music are AI-generated. There are even small details added, such as the group being formed in 1971, disbanding in 1992, and performing salsa music. The channel, “Zauret Records,” states at the end of each video that everything on the channel is fictional.

The Concubanas group is just one example. Researchers from the University of Sussex indicate that the number of AI-generated fake bands and songs has been significantly increasing, beginning to dominate platforms like YouTube and Spotify. While there’s no inherent harm in creating music with AI, researchers highlight the problem of a lack of transparency. The issue lies in not being able to identify which songs or groups are AI-generated.

Studies predict that revenues from AI-generated music could reach around $4 billion by 2028. It’s also estimated that music platforms could earn approximately 20% of their total revenue from this type of music. This means the number of AI songs will continue to grow day by day.

Therefore, it’s crucial to take necessary precautions and label AI-generated songs. Otherwise, in the future, we won’t be able to tell if a song was made by a real human, which will naturally become frustrating for listeners. Google has previously acknowledged that this situation could cause problems and suggested the need for labeling. We haven’t seen any statements from Spotify on this matter.