Zach Bryan is weighing in on the AI-generated music debate. Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen AI-generated music take off like a rocket on TikTok and other platforms. With advances in technology, many of these songs are nearly indistinguishable from the real thing, which obviously poses a risk to actual artists, songwriters, and fans who value real art over AI-generated slop. Of course, there is also the concern that AI is stealing from artists, just as AI platforms like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews essentially steal from articles on the internet. While many folks have spoken out, like Martina McBride, trying to protect artists from “deepfakes,” which protects artists from AI content being generated under their name and likeness, completely AI-generated music is a different ball game. And now the unimaginable has happened: an AI artist is actually topping one of Billboard’s country music charts. A few weeks back, Whiskey Riff reported the #1 song on the Billboard Country Digital Song Sales chart was “Walk My Walk” by AI band, Breaking Rust. The song is credited to someone named Aubierre Rivaldo Taylor, who is also behind an “artist” called Defbeatsai, which posts some…well, pretty raunchy AI-generated songs. While the Instagram page for Defbeatsai discloses that the songs are AI-generated, the IG for Breaking Rust describes it as only “Outlaw Country” and “Soul Music for Us,” with no mention that the music is created entirely by a machine. Many music fans have been outraged by the news, and country music stars like Jason Aldean, Riley Green and Charley Crockett have spoken out against it. All in all, you’d think that everyone and their mother hates the idea of AI infiltrating the music industry. And with the outrage and backlash that’s come from Breaking Rust’s success, you’d think that the music industry would make sure to stand firm and condemn AI-generated music, right… think again. Bloomberg News reported that some of the music industry’s biggest labels have signed on to a new AI music streaming service called Klay. The Los Angeles-based music technology company has decided to enter into the music streaming space, and what they’ve convinced UMG, Sony, and WMG to be a part of seems rather scary: “Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group have licensed their catalogs to Klay, an AI-powered music streaming startup that will let users remake songs using artificial intelligence.” Klay says their large music model “reimagines listening with immersive, interactive tools and is trained entirely on licensed music,” and they have apparently been working with some of the biggest parties in the music industry for over a year to “build an innovative and comprehensive licensing framework for an AI-driven music experience.” They also promise that their AI streaming service will “fully respect the rights of artists, songwriters, and rights holders.” And by fully respect the rights, they mean… get some money. But how will that be policed? It feels like we are moving into a world where technology is developing too quickly for us to think through all the ins and outs of how it will work, and humans can’t keep up with the pace at which it’s being implemented into our daily lives. And speaking of things modernizing and technology taking over, Zach Bryan weighed in on the matter. Bryan took to Instagram this morning, November 26, to lay down a statement about AI songwriters, while essentially calling out artist who already don’t write their own songs: “People who don’t write their own songs, complaining about A.I. writing songs, is like a guy in finance complaining about farmers switching from plow horses to tractors.”  He continued: “I appreciate true writers, and I do understand the issue with it, but if you’re worried about a generic word machine with no emotions or nuance writing better metaphors and being more relatable than you, it should tell you more about yourself than the state of technology.” The posts have since been deleted… shocking, I know… I mean, he’s not entirely wrong in the sense that some artists only record songs written by other people, but at the same time, should we really be opening the door to this kind of slop? I have seen a number of artists argue that AI can’t perform a live show, but I GUARANTEE you that some folks would absolutely pay for tickets to see an AI-generated band play on a movie screen. Without a doubt… have you seen some of the crap people spend money on? The other argument I’ve seen from artists, which is more akin to Zach’s, is that AI isn’t much different than the mindless, overly-cliche, shallow, pop country buzzword garbage that is all over country radio. And while that may be true to a certain extent (more so at the height of bro country) it opens the door to this slippery slope that I want no part of. Give AI an inch and it’ll take a mile… But it also feels like Zach is saying that it’s inevitable, which it certainly seems like it is at this point. Of course, we all know that when farmers moved from using plow horses to tractors, it sped up workflow, making farming a much more efficient and sustainable career. But sometimes the old way is better, especially when it comes to art, and I hope that’s what he’s trying to get people to see from this analogy. I do think there is some truth in Zach Bryan’s statement in the sense that those who are not writing their own songs don’t have a ton of grounds to stand on, given their livelihood does not depend on a songwriting check, and they can make a living off singing alone. However, given the recent news about Klay, it appears that songwriters and singers alike are now in trouble, and I’d urge anyone involved… artists, songwriters, musicians, and even fans, to collectively stand against it. If (maybe more like when, sadly) AI surpasses human beings in total art and music creation, it’ll undoubtedly be a sad existence. We certainly seem to be barreling towards that future at a very rapid rate… Fire up “I Remember Everything” while you’re here: Zach Bryan Tour Dates March 7 – St. Louis, Missouri – The Dome at America’s Super Center – Caamp & J.R. Carroll March 14 – Tampa, Florida – Raymond James Stadium – Caamp & J.R. Carroll March 21 – San Antonio, Texas – The Aladome – Caamp & J.R. Carroll March 28 – Baton Rouge, Louisiana – Tiger Stadium – Caamp & J.R. Carroll April 11 – Louisville, Kentucky – L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium – Kings of Leon & J.R. Carroll April 18 – Charlotte, North Carolina – Bank of America Stadium – Caamp & J.R. Carroll April 25 – Lincoln, Nebraska – Memorial Stadium – Kings of Leon & J.R. Carroll May 2 – Starkville, Mississippi – Davis Wade Stadium – Dijon & J.R. Carroll May 9 – Cleveland, Ohio – Huntington Bank Field – Dijon & J.R. Carroll May 27 – San Sebastian, Spain – Donostia Arena- Ben Howard & Keenan O’Meara May 31 – Berlin, Germany – Waldbühne – Ben Howard & Keenan O’Meara June 3 – Oslo, Norway – Unity Arena – Ben Howard & Keenan O’Meara June 6 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Parken – Ben Howard & Keenan O’Meara June 9 – Eindhoven, Netherlands – Philips Stadium – Ben Howard & Keenan O’Meara June 12 – Liverpool, United Kingdom – Anfield Stadium – Dijon & Fey Fili June 14 – Edinburgh, United Kingdom – Scottish Gas Murrayfield – Dijon & Fey Fili June 16 – London, United Kingdom – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – Dijon & Fey Fili June 17 – London, United Kingdom – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – Dijon & Fey Fili June 20 – Cork, Ireland – Páirc Úi Chaoimh – Dijon & Fey Fili June 21 – Cork, Ireland – Páirc Úi Chaoimh – Dijon & Fey Fili June 23 – Belfast, Northern Ireland – Boucher Playing Fields – Dijon & Fey Fili June 24 – Belfast, Northern Ireland – Boucher Playing Fields – Dijon & Fey Fili July 31 – San Diego, California – Snapdragon Stadium – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili August 1 – San Diego, California – Snapdragon Stadium – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili August 7 – Salt Lake City, Utah – Rice-Eccles Stadium – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili August 13 – Denver, Colorado – Empower Field at Mile High – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili August 14 – Denver, Colorado – Empower Field at Mile High – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili August 22 – Arlington, Texas – AT&T Stadium – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili September 5 – Glendale, Arizona – State Farm Stadium – MJ Lenderman & Fey Fili September 18 – Dover, Delaware – The Woodlands – Kings of Leon, Fey Fili & Gabriella Rose September 19 – Dover, Delaware – The Woodlands – Alabama Shakes, Fey Fili & Gabriella Rose October 2 – Foxborough, Massachusetts – Gillette Stadium – Gregory Alan Isakov & Gabriella Rose October 3 – Foxborough, Massachusetts – Gillette Stadium – Gregory Alan Isakov & Gabriella Rose October 10 – Auburn, Alabama – Jordan-Hare Stadium – Gregory Alan Iskov & Gabriella RoseThe post Zach Bryan Weighs In On AI Songwriting, Calls Out Artists Who Don’t Write Their Own Songs first appeared on Whiskey Riff.