Latest news with #FloatingonEchoes
Muscat Daily
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Muscat Daily
Not quite human: AI band's debut sparks industry meltdown
In a plot twist worthy of a sci-fi rock opera, a mysterious band has shaken the music world – and not just with its sound. Racking up over a million Spotify streams, Velvet Sundown's debut album Floating on Echoes and Dust and Silence struck a chord with listeners drawn to its soulful, country-folk vibe reminiscent of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. But as fans started digging into the story behind the group, they unearthed something unexpected: the band wasn't quite real. After a short-lived run of interviews and vague statements describing themselves as 'guided by human creative direction', the group finally came clean online. The entire project – from vocals and lyrics to promotional photos and even the band's backstory – was created using AI tools, particularly the music generation platform Suno. Their cryptic confession on social media only fuelled the fire: 'Not quite human. Not quite machine. Merely somewhere in between'. What followed was a heated debate across the Internet and inside the industry. Spotify, where the album gained its viral popularity, came under fire for its lack of transparency. A spokesperson insisted that 'all music on Spotify, including AI-generated music, is created, owned and uploaded by licensed third parties.' But critics weren't convinced. Liz Pelly, author of Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist , pointed to earlier incidents — like the 2023 viral AI track that mimicked Drake and The Weeknd — as evidence of how easily AI can mislead listeners and exploit real artists. Industry figures like Sophie Jones from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) have echoed calls for stricter rules around AI-generated content, including clearer labelling, licensing, and enforcement. While fans continue to stream the album – perhaps now out of curiosity more than admiration – the controversy has sparked one of the most urgent debates in recent music history. Is this the future of music creation, or just a digital masquerade? Either way, it seems that Velvet Sundown has left a lasting echo — real or artificial.
New York Post
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Rock band with more than 1 million Spotify listeners reveals it's entirely AI-generated — down to the musicians themselves
A fresh new rock band that quickly shot to Spotify's top ranks announced that it's actually wholly generated by artificial intelligence, just one month after its celebrated debut album earned it one million listeners. The '60s-inspired rock-and-roll band, the Velvet Sundown, revealed on Saturday that nothing about it is real after fans of the up-and-coming artists noticed there were virtually no traces of any people associated with it online. Its debut album, 'Floating on Echoes,' was released on June 5 to mass appeal online. Advertisement The most popular song in the album, pro-peace folk rock song 'Dust on the Wind,' clinched the No. 1 spot for Spotify's daily 'Viral 50' chart in Britain, Norway and Sweden between June 29 and July 1. 3 Velvet Sundown gained over 1 million listeners on Spotify. The Velvet Sundown/Facebook All the while, the one million monthly listeners who started following the Velvet Sundown had no idea they were just listening to a mass of artificial intelligence made by fake musicians. Advertisement The photos of the band shared online and featured on the album's cover were unnaturally smooth and matte and the guitarist's hand was wonky with fused fingers gripping his instrument — a classic hallmark of AI-generated images. The band's lyrics, too, were a perfect mesh of generic anti-war sentiments and other clichés like 'Nothin' lasts forever but the earth and sky, it slips away, and all your money won't another minute buy.' The faux rockstars were also pumping out new albums scarily — and inhumanly — fast, releasing two in June alone and another set for mid-July. 3 The AI band released two albums in June alone and another was set for July. Spotify Advertisement The band finally revealed its secret over the weekend. It updated its Spotify biography Saturday to reflect the AI twist, assuring that the project hadn't been trying to bamboozle its audience. 'The Velvet Sundown is a synthetic music project guided by human creative direction, and composed, voiced, and visualized with the support of artificial intelligence. This isn't a trick – it's a mirror. An ongoing artistic provocation designed to challenge the boundaries of authorship, identity, and the future of music itself in the age of AI,' the biography reads. Advertisement Some people who had seen through the band's ploy early tried to take advantage of its viral success before the truth came out. A Quebec-based web safety expert posed as a spokesperson for the Velvet Sundown under the pseudonym Andrew Frelon, which translates to hornet in French, and even slid false information to Rolling Stone magazine about his supposed clients. But the man behind the Frelon quickly confessed that he was just trying to troll people online. 3 The AI-generated images showed a microphone cord disappearing into a singer's arm, a guitarist's fingers fused together and the headstock of a Stratocaster being the incorrect shape. The Velvet Sundown/Facebook It's unclear if the Velvet Sundown will face any backlash from Spotify or any other platforms where it may be eligible for streaming revenue. Starting on July 15, YouTube announced that it would be cutting all monetization, including advertisements, for any content generated by AI. In late June, popular YouTuber announced a tool that would use AI to make thumbnails for videos. He quickly removed it after receiving backlash for supporting an artificial intelligence engine, which often requires massive amounts of energy that would steadily offset his years of environmental work and reforestation efforts.
NZ Herald
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
The Velvet Sundown: The AI band that blew up on Spotify
Success came quickly for the Velvet Sundown. On June 5, they released their debut album, 'Floating on Echoes,' and in fewer than two weeks, it ended up on Spotify playlists with hundreds of thousands of saves. 'Dust on the Wind,' a pro-peace folk rock song on 'Floating on Echoes,' secured
Toronto Sun
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
A '60s-flavoured band blew up on Spotify. They're AI
Published Jul 08, 2025 • 4 minute read A image of Velvet Sundown taken from the group's Spotify page. Photo by Velvet Sundown / Spotify Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Success came quickly for the Velvet Sundown. On June 5, they released their debut album, 'Floating on Echoes,' and in fewer than two weeks, it ended up on Spotify playlists with hundreds of thousands of saves. 'Dust on the Wind,' a pro-peace folk rock song on 'Floating on Echoes,' secured the No. 1 spot for Spotify's daily Viral 50 chart in Britain, Norway and Sweden between June 29 and July 1. In just over a month, the Velvet Sundown had over 1 million monthly streams on Spotify. There was one only problem: It didn't seem like the Velvet Sundown was really a band at all. There was no evidence online that any of the listed band members were real people. The photos the band shared were uncannily smooth, the vocals mechanically soulful and the lyrics a grab bag of anti-war cliches. To many of those following the band's quick popularity – it released two albums, 'Floating on Echoes' and 'Dust and Silence,' in June alone, with a third coming in mid-July – the Velvet Sundown seemed like classic-rock snake oil. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. On Saturday, the group confirmed through its Spotify bio that the music was created using artificial intelligence 'guided by human creative direction.' 'This isn't a trick – it's a mirror,' the statement reads. 'An ongoing artistic provocation designed to challenge the boundaries of authorship, identity, and the future of music itself in the age of AI.' The admission capped nearly three weeks of speculation – and confusion. Shortly after the Velvet Sundown began to garner media attention, someone using the pseudonym Andrew Frelon claimed to be a spokesperson for the band, providing conflicting information to Rolling Stone about its use of AI. The Washington Post spoke to Frelon – which translates to hornet in French – last week but could not verify his involvement with the Velvet Sundown. The next morning, Frelon, who described himself as a Quebec-based web safety expert, revealed in a lengthy Medium post that he was not behind the Velvet Sundown's music. He had falsely claimed to be the band on Twitter to troll those outraged by the band's use of AI. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The music's plausibility speaks to the blandness of some contemporary rock music. When Steven Hyden, author of 'Twilight of the Gods: A Journey to the End of Classic Rock,' heard 'Dust on the Wind,' he felt it could be a parody of the generic Los Angeles bands that play mellow rock. 'There's lots of bands like this trying to take the essence of late-'60s, early-'70s folk rock and replicate it in the most faithful way possible,' Hyden said in a phone call. 'If you just played ('Dust on the Wind') for me without any context, I would have no reason to think it was fake. I would think it was a very derivative band that made a listenable-sounding song.' The band's use of AI troubled many, particularly listeners such as Jamie Jones, an electrical engineer from Manchester, England, who stumbled on the music through streaming algorithms. When 'Dust on the Wind' appeared in his Discover Weekly queue, he assumed the song was performed by humans. Jones now says he hopes Spotify won't program AI-assisted songs in playlists without adding a label first. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'If they're putting in five songs to the playlist from the same AI band, and Spotify knows it's AI, you're taking food out of people's mouths who are trying to make it in that business,' Jones said. 'That's pretty wrong.' Spotify did not respond to a request for comment. Others were less concerned about the music's digital provenance. When looking for music for his yoga classes, Oklahoma native Byron de Marsé often scrolls on Instagram. He initially heard the Velvet Sundown's 'Drift Beyond the Flame' in a video of someone dancing. Before long, he worked the song into a yoga class, not realizing AI was involved. 'It's got this emotional tone to it, so it's good for the end of a power yoga or vinyasa, where you're deeply stretching,' said de Marsé, who plans on continuing to use the song in classes. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Beyond the philosophical questions about their use of AI, the success of the Velvet Sundown is a strange testimony to the enduring appeal of classic rock. All of the superficial signifiers of classic rock are here, including lyrics about boots, freedom and flags flying. If you squint, 'Drift Beyond the Flame' could be a B-side from Neil Young's 'Harvest,' while 'Rebel Yell' is not far from a Bad Company cover. On 'Vietnam War Music,' one of the Spotify playlists where the band's songs appear, the entire Velvet Sundown discography sits alongside no less than 19 songs by beloved swamp rockers Creedence Clearwater Revival. Stu Cook, CCR's bassist, doesn't think the Velvet Sundown does justice to his band's era of music. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'I just can't get past how boring the band is. There's just nothing inspiring at all about any of it,' Cook said. 'In a kind of off-the-wall way, I'm honored that they're including aspects of anything that Creedence represents in their AI efforts, whoever's behind all this. To me, it doesn't sound anything like Creedence.' Love concerts, but can't make it to the venue? Stream live shows and events from your couch with VEEPS, a music-first streaming service now operating in Canada. Click here for an introductory offer of 30% off. Explore upcoming concerts and the extensive archive of past performances. Canada Crime Canada Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls
Washington Post
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
A '60s-flavored band blew up on Spotify. They're AI.
Success came quickly for the Velvet Sundown. On June 5, they released their debut album, 'Floating on Echoes,' and in fewer than two weeks, it ended up on Spotify playlists with hundreds of thousands of saves. 'Dust on the Wind,' a pro-peace folk rock song on 'Floating on Echoes,' secured the No. 1 spot for Spotify's daily Viral 50 chart in Britain, Norway and Sweden between June 29 and July 1. In just over a month, the Velvet Sundown had over 1 million monthly streams on Spotify.
