The global recorded music industry agreed its first labelling standard for artificial intelligence on Friday, a voluntary two-tier system that asks record companies to mark a track as either AI-Generated or AI-Assisted. It covers sound recordings only. It does not cover lyrics, composition, music videos or cover art, and nobody is obliged to use it.
The standard was introduced by the IFPI, the RIAA, A2IM, WIN, IMPALA, the Recording Academy, SAG-AFTRA and the Human Artistry Campaign. A recording is AI-Generated when generative AI produced the whole thing or its primary creative elements, such as the lead vocal or a key instrumental, or when it came wholly from a prompt. It is AI-Assisted when the work is predominantly human, with lead vocals and primary instruments performed by people and AI used for some expressive elements.
“Fans want to know whether and how generative AI has been used in the music to which they listen," said Vikki Oakley, the chief executive of the IFPI, and Mitch Glazier, the chairman and chief executive of the RIAA, in a joint statement.”
ARIA welcomed the standard the same day. "Human artistry and authenticity are integral to what makes music so powerful," said Annabelle Herd, ARIA's chief executive. "Honest labelling helps listeners make informed choices and keeps human creativity at the centre of our industry."
The test case is already on the radio. A rework of Madonna's Like A Prayer by the Australian producer Josh Fawaz, which credits no vocalist, sits at number four on ARIA's Top 20 Australian Artist Singles Chart for the week of 13 July, and at number four on the dance singles chart in its tenth week. It topped the Radio Monitor Hot 100 over the past month and is currently at number two. No other Australian artist is in the radio top 10.
Whether the track was generated by AI has not been established. Fawaz has said in Instagram comments that he uses AI "as a tool" and that "it's not that deep". APRA AMCOS has confirmed that Madonna Ciccone and Patrick Leonard, who wrote Like A Prayer in 1989, are still paid royalties on it.
Australian commercial radio carries Australian content quotas. The strongest performing Australian record on the air is a rework of an American song, credited to a producer with no vocalist listed. The labelling standard is voluntary, covers sound recordings, and was agreed after the record had already reached number two.
Madonna is at number one in her own right. Confessions II debuted at the top of the ARIA Albums Chart for the week of 13 July, her 13th ARIA number one album and her 22nd top 10, going back to True Blue in 1986. Her last number one here was Finally Enough Love in 2022. Only Jimmy Barnes, The Beatles and Taylor Swift have more ARIA chart topping albums, and Barnes leads them all with 22.
On the Australian albums chart, Keith Urban's Flow State climbed from three to one, ahead of Ninajirachi's I Love My Computer. The next ARIA charts are published on Friday.
