A duo of Drake and The Weeknd, created by artificial intelligence, divides the world of music

A fake track by singers Drake and The Weeknd has racked up millions of streams online since its release on Friday, prompting record label Universal Music to demand its removal and raising the question of intellectual property.

First published on TikTok, the song Heart on my sleeve, which has more than 15 million views on the social network, was removed from the catalogs of Spotify and Apple Music at the request of Universal Music Group (UMG), which represents both artists, citing copyright violations. “I used an AI to create a Drake song with The Weeknd,” wrote the one who calls himself Ghostwriter977 in a video on which we see a figure covered with a white sheet sporting sunglasses.

The original video has since been deleted from social media but continues to be shared by many netizens on different platforms. “This is just the beginning,” he wrote on his TikTok page as new videos featuring the track are reposted frequently. The title, which mixes hip-hop and rap sounds, clones the voices of the artists by simulating exchanges about actress Selena Gomez, with whom The Weeknd recently had a short history.

This “begs the question of which side of the story all players in the music ecosystem want to be on: on the side of artists, fans, and human creative expression, or on the side of deep forgery, fraud and the denial to artists of the remuneration due to them,” Universal Music Group (UMG) told AFP. In March, the record company wrote to streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple, asking them to block AI services from extracting melodies and lyrics from their copyrighted songs, according to emails viewed by the Financial Times.

The use of AI in music is a subject of debate in the music industry, with some denouncing the legal abuses it entails and others praising its prowess. In March, a coalition of around 40 organizations, the Human Artistry Campaign, was created to ensure that AI is used responsibly in music. They established a series of principles aimed at protecting the creativity of artists. “Governments should not create new copyright exemptions that allow AI developers to exploit the work of creators without paying them compensation or obtaining their consent.”

Drake and The Weeknd aren't the only stars to have their voices used by AI. Beyonce's song Cuff it has been machine edited: Rihanna performs Beyonce's title in a disturbing way. And the AI ​​even has the power to revive the dead, since Michael Jackson sings I feel it coming by The Weeknd.

David Guetta recently used AI for a rapper Eminem-style voice for one of his shows. The DJ star did not market this title, explaining to the BBC wanting to "open the discussion for awareness".