Velvet Sundown with 1 million plays on Spotify revealed to be an AI-generated band

This has fueled wider debates over authenticity in the music industry. Insiders argue that streaming platforms should be legally required to label AI-generated content so listeners can make informed choices.

The band had initially described itself as "a synthetic music project guided by human creative direction," and denied it was AI-generated, the Guardian reported.

The group released two albums in June, Floating On Echoes and Dust And Silence, both bearing striking similarities to Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s folk-rock style.

On July 2, a representative of the band who identified himself as an "adjunct" member, told Rolling Stone that the Velvet Sundown was using the generative AI platform Suno to create their music. He also described the project as an "art hoax."

The band’s official social media accounts pushed back on these claims before confirming that Velvet Sundown was, in fact, AI-generated. They classify the band as "not quite human, not quite machine," but existing somewhere between the two.

AI-generated image of the band Velvet Sundown. Photo by courtesy of Velvet Sundown

Roberto Neri, CEO of the Ivors Academy, expressed serious concerns over transparency and authorship, especially as AI bands like Velvet Sundown reach large audiences without human songwriters or performers. He acknowledged AI’s potential to support human creativity if used ethically and cautiously.

Australian music company Vinyl Group quickly grabbed the domain velvetsundown.com after catching wind of the outrage, according to MediaWeek.

Instead of promoting the project further, the website has since become a space dedicated to exploring generative art, algorithm-driven creativity and the evolving concept of authorship in an increasingly synthetic era.

It is currently unclear what source material Velvet Sundown’s albums were trained on.

Critics argue this lack of transparency could take independent artists away from their deserved royalties and recognition.

Spotify does not label music as AI-generated, and has faced criticism in the past for including fictitious stock music creators in its playlists. A Spotify spokesperson responded by saying the platform does not prioritize AI music and that all content is uploaded by licensed third-party distributors regardless of their creators.