Following uproar over an Australian DJ’s rendition of Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” topping local music charts, Australia’s top music trade group announced this week that AI-generated music will no longer be included in the country’s charts.
The Australian Recording Industry Association, or ARIA, announced on Tuesday that records that use generative AI in a supporting capacity would still be eligible for its well-known ARIA Charts, but tracks that are entirely AI-generated would no longer be.
According to ARIA, a recording created with generative AI will only qualify if it is “substantially human made” and doesn’t present any issues with streaming or chart manipulation.
As AI-generated music becomes more popular and listeners find it harder to tell it apart from songs produced by humans, major international record labels have been looking for new licensing agreements to safeguard their extensive catalogs.
“A chart that rewards unlicensed AI output would undermine the very foundation of the recorded music we exist to represent, but the ARIA charts will always remain a transparent measurement of the music Australia consumes,” stated Annabelle Herd, CEO of ARIA.
Every Friday, Apple Music and Spotify issue the ARIA Charts, which are a compilation of Australia’s top singles and albums.
Some producers claimed that the usage of generative AI in Queensland-based DJ Josh Fawaz’s rendition of Madonna’s 1989 hit song “Like a Prayer” was not initially disclosed. In July, it peaked at No. 4 on two ARIA charts and became the most popular song on Australian radio.
Fawaz was not immediately reachable by Reuters for comment.
Fawaz has been referred to as “the biggest issue in music right now” by music producer Mitch Thomas, who goes by the stage moniker “Needs No Sleep.”
In June, Fawaz responded to Thomas’ criticism on Instagram by saying that while he utilized AI “as a tool, it’s not that deep” and that his goal was to give his listeners “good music.” He had been releasing music long before AI.
