Panic World You might be listening to AI music
Sep 10, 2025
Music critic Anthony Fantano, known for his insightful album reviews on The Needle Drop, joins the conversation about the rise of AI-generated music, particularly the success of The Velvet Sundown. They delve into the blurred lines of authenticity in the music industry, discussing legal and ethical issues like copyright and artist compensation. The duo also examines how AI influences the emotional connection listeners have with music, raising critical questions about the future of creativity and the impact on traditional artists.
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Early DM Tipoffs About Velvet Sundown
- Fantano describes getting DMs tipping him off as Velvet Sundown grew to hundreds of thousands of listeners.
- He watched media coverage escalate with each new monthly-listener milestone.
AI Training Mirrors Unpaid Sampling
- Anthony Fantano argues the core problem is training AI models on other artists' copyrighted work without standards.
- He calls it like sampling with an extra step that should require credit and compensation.
AI Voices Can Steal Living Artists' Sound
- AI-generated vocals often mimic specific living artists because models learn from copyrighted recordings.
- Fantano insists those original artists deserve credit and fair compensation.
