AI Band The Velvet Sundown Amasses Over a Million Spotify Listeners, Sparking Debate on the Future of Music
A new band called The Velvet Sundown has rapidly gained popularity on Spotify, attracting over a million monthly listeners despite – or perhaps because of – its unconventional origins. Described as “Not quite human. Not quite machine,” the group’s music and aesthetic evoke the sounds of the 1960s and 70s Sunset Strip, but the reality behind the band is far more complex, raising fundamental questions about authorship and creativity in the age of artificial intelligence.
The Rise of a “Synthetic” Music Project
The Velvet Sundown’s debut album has quickly resonated with audiences, with their top track, “Dust on the Wind,” garnering over 1.1 million streams as of press time. The band’s Spotify profile explicitly states that it is a “synthetic music project guided by human creative direction, and composed, voiced, and visualized with the support of artificial intelligence.” This isn’t intended as deception, but rather as “an ongoing artistic provocation designed to challenge the boundaries of authorship, identity, and the future of music itself.”
Images accompanying the band’s music on Spotify and Instagram depict four individuals, but these images are, in fact, AI-generated. Notably, no individual publicly affiliated with the project has spoken to the media, and there are no records of live performances. The band maintains a limited social media presence, with fewer than 3,000 followers combined across X, Instagram, and TikTok as of this writing, and the latter two accounts were not verified.
Navigating Authenticity and AI-Generated Content
The emergence of The Velvet Sundown comes amid growing concerns about the use of generative AI in creative industries. Multiple petitions have called for bans on its usage, and prominent artists like Sir Elton John and Dua Lipa have advocated for AI regulations. The band’s success, therefore, represents a significant moment in this ongoing debate.
Dr. Fabian Stephany, an assistant professor for AI and Work at the University of Oxford, believes the band’s popularity challenges long-held assumptions about human creativity. “When an act like The Velvet Sundown racks up more than a million monthly listeners on Spotify, it punctures the long-held belief that writing songs that move people is a uniquely human talent,” Stephany told Newsweek via email. “If algorithms can now evoke emotion, we have to (once again) rethink what truly separates human and machine creativity.”
Addressing Identity Concerns and Copyright Implications
On July 3, The Velvet Sundown issued a statement addressing an attempt to “Hijack the identity of The Velvet Sundown” through the release of unauthorized interviews, fabricated photos, and the creation of imposter profiles. The band emphasized that this was an “active attempt to misrepresent our work” and urged fans to rely solely on official channels for information.
Stephany further cautioned that presenting machine-generated music as the work of human artists could erode trust, particularly as authenticity becomes increasingly valued. He also highlighted the complex copyright issues surrounding generative AI, noting that these models “necessarily remix vast libraries of copyrighted work,” and the industry is still grappling with whether this constitutes fair use, licensed sampling, or outright infringement.
The Evolving Division of Labor in Music
The success of The Velvet Sundown also points to a shift in the creative process. As Stephany explained, “You can’t simply type create a viral rock band and watch the royalties roll in… AI doesn’t write the hit on autopilot but it might turn one skilled creator into a ten-person studio.” This suggests that AI may not replace human artists entirely, but rather augment their capabilities and reshape the division of labor within the music industry.
According to a statement shared on X, The Velvet Sundown affirms that “All characters, stories, music, voices and lyrics are original creations generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence tools employed as creative instruments.” The band maintains that any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.
Stephany concludes that the band’s popularity demonstrates that “curiosity often trumps provenance—at least on first listen.” Whether audiences will remain engaged once the novelty wears off, he suggests, will depend on the band’s ability to deliver consistent quality and compelling storytelling. “What’s certain is that we’ll see similar AI-human hybrids in film, fashion and even stand-up comedy,” he added. “The music world is simply the latest canary in the coalmine.”
