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K-pop Insiders Express Concerns About AI Covers: Fun Or Risk

"NewJeans" sung by Dean and "Ditto" sung by G-Dragon are popular AI covers these days

Dean singing “Newjeans” and G-Dragon singing “Ditto,” these videos drew attention as soon as they were released on YouTube. Even though these cover songs are fake, the voice, breathing method, and unique atmosphere are just like those of Dean or G-Dragon. This is in fact just a simple result of AI’s productions.

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AI cover songs are not as difficult to make as you think. If you put the artist and song you want into the program and synthesize them, you can listen to the song you want in a short time. Since it is a song created by AI learning, not only the voice of the music is altered, but the atmosphere and singing method can also change depending on the artist you want. 

Now fans are starting to enjoy the AI cover song. In addition to Dean and G-Dragon, Taeyeon and IU are singing the 4th to 5th generation K-pop songs on YouTube. Many even enjoy listening to these more than the original songs. However, the copyright issue has become a problem.

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In fact, regularly cover songs and playlists of the general public are not actually intended to generate profits. For this reason, many people view it as a “joke” of the public without the need to impose any sanctions. However, AI cover songs are in a different situation. A program is used to change the original sound and recreate the sound source with AI technology. A related incident took place in April of this year. 

At that time, a cover of “Heart On My Sleeve” sung by The Weeknd and Drake was ranked high on the music charts. However, it turned out to be a fake cover made by AI. Since then, the cover has been deleted due to copyright infringement. However, in August of the same year, Google and Universal Music signed a partnership to legalize AI sound sources. 

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As AI cover songs are actively shared in Korea as well as overseas, the copyright issue cannot be ignored. How is the music industry looking at this? 

A K-pop insider expressed concern, saying, “At that time, a copyright debate broke out over AI music in the United States, and it is still unknown whether singers’ voices should be included in the concept of copyrights,” but added, “If AI music is to be released, singers’ voices may be abused, resulting in a series of fake sound sources as in the previous case.” “If AI replaces the singer’s domain, the singers’ position will inevitably weaken,” he continued. 

As AI technology gradually develops, the world is changing out of control. As it is alarming not only in the U.S. but also in Korea, legislation related to AI songs should be settled as soon as possible.

Source: naver