AI Factors for Recordings

Generative AI can be a useful tool, but it is important to understand how tracks made with AI will be treated in the marketplace, and whether UMG can accept them. This document does not constitute legal advice; you should consult your own legal counsel with any questions about copyright, the protectability of your work, or other legal issues relating to your use of AI.

1. Copyright

UMG cannot accept recordings unless they are copyright protectable. A recording is not eligible for copyright protection in the U.S. and other territories unless it contains sufficient human input and creativity. Purely AI-generated or prompted material is not protected on its own and no amount of prompting will make it eligible, although human-created elements in a work that includes AI material may still be protected. The safest approach is to keep the lead vocal, main hook, chorus, featured instrumental performances, solos and other defining parts of the track human-created. Using a responsibly licensed AI tool to help form ideas for these parts is fine, provided the AI’s output is not in the final recording and creative decisions are made by a human.

The risk of a recording that used AI being ineligible for copyright protection is lowered when the AI use is purely supporting the human-created elements – such as incidental uses to support the non- featured vocal and instrumentation, short background samples, AI effects, stem separation, cleanup, mastering or similar production assistance. If AI generated a portion of the track that listeners would sing, quote, clip, or describe as the signature element of the track it is worth checking with UMG before submitting.

Cover art and music videos are also subject to the same copyright considerations.

2. Ownership Rights

Make sure any AI tool grants the user all the rights needed to freely own and commercially exploit the output. Free tools often do not grant these rights.

3. Music Service Scrutiny

Major music services are adopting AI detection technology. 100% AI generated tracks or tracks containing AI-generated audio, especially AI-generated lead vocals, hooks, or main instruments may be flagged. Possible consequences include being removed from the service, labeled as “AI Generated” (see below), removal from editorial playlists and recommendations, demonetization, and penalties for failing to disclose AI use.

4. AI Labeling

Several countries have passed laws requiring that fully and/or partially AI-generated content be labeled. Under the voluntary recording-industry labeling framework a track will be labeled “AI Generated” if AI created the entire recording or the primary creative elements, including a lead vocal or the key instrumental performance.  A track will be “AI Assisted” if it is substantially human-made and AI is only used in minor ways such as in support of backing vocals or a few non-primary instruments.  Some or all elements of “AI Generated” recordings may not qualify for copyright and therefore may not be accepted by UMG. Voice-to-voice AI is not “AI Generated” when used to modify human performance and authorized by the performer themselves.  Technical or negligible uses, e.g. AI-assisted mastering, stem separation, AI reverb, or short background AI samples, may not require labeling but must be disclosed to UMG.

5. Chart Eligibility

To be eligible for IFPI official charts, recordings with AI-generated elements must be substantially human-made, use lawful and authorized AI services, comply with applicable laws and tool terms, avoid streaming manipulation concerns, and be appropriately labeled (e.g. as “AI Assisted”). Wholly AI-generated music is not eligible for the IFPI official charts. If AI creates the primary vocal, main instrumental performance, or another central element of a track (e.g. is “AI Generated”), it may not be chart eligible.

6. Award Eligibility

Several international award programs have strict AI rules.  For example, Grammy eligibility requires that relevant creative contributions be human-made. Human authorship must be meaningful, more than de minimis, and relevant to the category entered. A track entered in a performance category must include meaningful human authorship.

7. Lawfully Trained & Licensed Commercial Tools

UMG will not accept recordings, cover art, or music videos that contain media from AI services it is suing, such as Suno or Anthropic, or that otherwise trained on or used UMG recordings without a license. To avoid infringing the rights of others, only use creation tools intended for commercial use and trained on legally obtained and licensed material. Such tools include SoundLabs, Splice, Stable Audio, and ElevenLabs Music. UMG will not accept AI audio generated by “walled-garden” services where the music is intended to stay on the platform or AI services licensed only for non-commercial/consumer use (e.g. Klay, Udio, Spotify, ElevenLabs consumer remix product).

8. Voice Consent

Various laws prohibit cloning, using, or transforming someone’s voice without permission. UMG will not release a recording with a digitally replicated voice without such legal authorization from the individual whose voice is replicated.

9. Record Keeping

Even if artists use AI responsibly and with awareness of the issues above, there may be questions about what is/isn’t AI and whether tracks qualify for copyright, charting, etc.  Artists can protect themselves when using AI by recording how and where they used AI, detailing and documenting the creative process and including details about the specific tools used.