A cryptic indie rock group called The Velvet Sundown has swept Spotify off its feet. However, it’s also generating a lot of intrigue.
With over 474,000 monthly listeners and 380,000 streams for its hit “Dust on the Wind” since June 20, speculation is growing that the viral song may be AI-generated.
Velvet Sundown is Allegedly AI Band
AI Band Velvet Sundown Goes Viral on Spotify
Spotify
Internet detectives initially flagged the suspicious details on Reddit, and these included:
- A profile picture that appears AI-made
- Band member photos on Instagram that appear suspiciously artificial
- An odd quote from Billboard in the bio that does not exist elsewhere
Even the band’s roster with names such as “Gabe Farrow” and “Rio Del Mar” has no presence beyond their Spotify listing. Red flags aside, The Velvet Sundown shows up on user-curated playlists such as Discover Weekly and also on Apple Music and Amazon Music, with do not mention AI involvement.
Deezer, a France-based music streaming service, has flagged the band’s songs as possibly generated by AI.
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Deezer’s Crackdown on AI Slop
Earlier this year, Deezer was the first big platform to tag AI-made songs. According to The Next Web, it now detects sound created by generative AI software, such as Suno and Udio, which turn text into complete music pieces. In April alone, 18% of Deezer’s uploads consisted of AI songs, nearly double what the company had in January.
According to Deezer CEO Alexis Lanternier, “AI is neither good nor bad” in itself. For the music industry, there should be responsible use and transparency to establish trust.
Quiet on AI Song Takeover
Even as Deezer took the initiative, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Tidal remain silent. Spotify, the same platform that catapulted The Velvet Sundown to fame, has not made any public attempt to label or restrict AI content.
That’s surprising given that another AI act, The Devil Inside, accumulated 1.6 million Spotify plays for “Bones in the River.” The song lists no credited creator, yet on Deezer, it’s labeled as AI and is credited to Hungarian musician László Tamási.
The Legal Gray Zone of AI in Music
The explosion of AI in music is starting legal wars. In 2023, American record labels sued Suno and Udio for copyright infringement, alleging their AI models were trained on copyrighted material without permission. The AI firms have responded by relying on the contentious “fair use” defense, contending their model training is within the law.
With AI use on the rise, AI singers will become a part of the music norm someday.
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