Australia’s chart gatekeepers are tightening the definition of eligible music as generative AI becomes more prevalent.<\/p>\n
Attention on the issue spiked after an Australian producer’s AI-altered take on Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” broke into the country’s top 20, accelerating a push to keep fully machine-made tracks out of official rankings, the Associated Press<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n Here’s what to know<\/p>\n The Australian Record Industry Association, or ARIA, decided that music created entirely by artificial intelligence cannot qualify for its charts or awards.<\/p>\n To stay eligible under the new standards, songs must still be human-led, including being written by people and featuring people on the lead vocals and principal instruments, among other criteria.<\/p>\n The flashpoint was an Australian producer’s version of “Like a Prayer” that used AI-generated drums and vocals; it spent 16 weeks in Australia’s top 20 and rose to No. 2 in May.<\/p>\n Annabelle Herd, ARIA’s chief executive, explained that the policy was designed to keep human artists central to an industry evolving at high speed.<\/p>\n “These changes reflect our intent to remain dynamic and promote the human nature of artistry in what is \u2014 to say the least \u2014 a rapidly developing space,” Herd commented, per AP.<\/p>\n Official charts can shape visibility, prestige, and career momentum, and eligibility rules can influence whose work gets recognized and whose livelihoods are supported.<\/p>\n More background<\/p>\n The debate over AI in music has become especially contentious because the technology can imitate voices, styles, and arrangements in ways that blur the line around authorship.<\/p>\n That can make it harder to know whether a piece of music reflects a musician’s labor or a machine-generated imitation.<\/p>\n ARIA also said that any AI used in chart-qualifying music must be licensed from legal services, addressing concerns that some tools may have been trained on artists’ work without permission.<\/p>\n ARIA’s policy is in line with guidance issued in July by the London-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which said chart-eligible music should be “substantially human made.”<\/p>\n Critics argue that AI is already embedded in modern music production and that broad restrictions could stifle experimentation or complicate enforcement.<\/p>\n That tension was reflected in comments to the Australian Broadcasting Corp. from Alexis Weaver, a composer and lecturer at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.<\/p>\n Weaver conceded that the debate was “exceptionally fraught and very emotional for a lot of musicians and so everyone will have a different opinion,” AP reported.<\/p>\n What’s being done?<\/p>\n ARIA’s policy attempts to draw a line without outright banning all AI involvement.<\/p>\n Music that is produced using AI can still qualify if humans clearly make the core creative decisions and the technology used is legal.<\/p>\n The policy creates guardrails around transparency, human authorship, and respect for artists whose work might otherwise be copied or mined without consent.<\/p>\n Clearer standards may help preserve trust in the charts as a meaningful reflection of what people choose to hear, rather than of what automated systems can produce at scale.<\/p>\n Policies like this could also help keep recognition and opportunity tied to real creative work, especially for musicians without major financial backing.<\/p>\n Weaver backed that emphasis, calling ARIA’s decision a “wonderful step forward” that showed the organization wanted to “prioritize and value human creativity,” AP reported.<\/p>\n “It can be quite hard to avoid AI tools in the current landscape,” Weaver admitted. “There is a way to use it while you’re still steering the ship and making the main creative choices.”<\/p>\n Get TCD’s free newsletters<\/a> for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia’s chart gatekeepers are tightening the definition of eligible music as generative AI becomes more prevalent. 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