There’s apparently one other high-profile AI imposter on the DSPs. The metalcore “band” Damaged Avenue has almost 130,000 month-to-month listeners on Spotify, the place it’s a “verified artist” and has one of many platform’s auto-generated “This Is” introductory playlists (which is triggered by a reputation threshold).
Followers of Counterparts, Knocked Unfastened, and the Satan Wears Prada say whoever is behind Damaged Avenue has generated music and art work to explicitly mimic these bands. For instance, within the picture atop this text you possibly can evaluate the artwork for Damaged Avenue’s new single “lastly free” (left) to the quilt of Counterparts’ 2019 LP Nothing Left To Love (proper).
Additionally suspicious is that the handfuls of songs related to the Damaged Avenue profile have been all uploaded previously six weeks. All credit score the unknown “James Tolby” as composer and lyricist. (The one exception is an EP that lists 2011 as its 12 months and “Santana Marsh” because the composer.)
Damaged Avenue was dropped at the eye of Counterparts’ singer Brendan Murphy, and he’s now known as out the suspicious act on X. Alongside a picture of the songwriter credit, Murphy wrote: “$100 to anybody who can get me the legit contact data for James Trolby I received’t do something fucking loopy you received’t get in hassle.” Time will inform if James Trolby is an actual particular person, a pseudonym, or an AI-generated artist.
Any of this bullshit sound acquainted? Final 12 months there was the entire debacle with the Velvet Sunset. The AI-generated “psych-rock band” racked up hundreds of thousands of streams whereas insisting it was fully human. That lie rapidly crumbled inside per week after a so-called spokesperson got here ahead about “artwork hoaxes,” just for him to be outed as a pretend spokesperson. Ultimately their streaming bio was up to date to acknowledge it’s a “artificial music venture,” one thing that may very well be simply missed by an informal listener.
Amongst music platforms, Deezer has not less than been proactive about figuring out AI music on its platform. In November it stated over 50,000 AI-generated tracks are uploaded to the app each day — 34% of its all new music. By the way, Damaged Avenue have solely “20 followers” on Deezer; possibly all their botting funds went to Spotify.
In a world the place verified badges have principally misplaced all which means, platforms are desperately overdue in taking motion to higher vet their “artists.”
