In a strange musical phenomenon, a psychedelic rock band appeared out of nowhere to dominate Spotify charts, featuring multiple albums and mysterious imagery. Are we looking at marketing genius or the latest example of artificial intelligence invading the music industry?
Introduction: A mysterious rise in the music world
The psychedelic rock band “The Velvet Sundown” has garnered over 500,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and released two full albums in just one month, with a third album on the way this month. While this rapid ascent would be impressive for any musical group, it appears the collective may actually be a product of generative artificial intelligence. One Twitter user pointed out that the band achieved all of this despite having existed for only two weeks. In addition to releasing albums at a rapid-fire pace, all the images posted on their social media accounts appear to have been generated by AI, prompting internet sleuths to investigate the band’s potential fabricated origins.
Digital evidence of a non-human origin
The airbrushed, smooth, and hyper-realistic nature of the band’s press photos strongly points to the use of artificial intelligence. However, very little information is available about the group other than their Spotify artist page. According to their bio, The Velvet Sundown’s music is “1970s alternative and psychedelic rock and folk rock,” and the lineup consists of four alleged “members”: singer and mellotron player Gabe Farrow, guitarist Lenny West, synth player Milo Rains, and percussionist Orion “Rio” Del Mar.
However, these members cannot be traced online anywhere outside of the band’s Instagram account, which was created just days ago. Some photos show the “members” enjoying burgers to celebrate the release of their second album, recreating the cover of the Beatles’ album “Abbey Road.”
A ghost in the musical machine
While it is possible that The Velvet Sundown’s more than half a million monthly listeners are merely bots, their most popular song on Spotify, “Dust on the Wind,” is approaching 500,000 streams as of this writing. Spotify does not allow bots on its platform, but it does permit AI-generated music without requiring disclosure. Interestingly, their records on another streaming service, Deezer, carry a disclaimer: “Some tracks on this album may have been generated using artificial intelligence.”
Spotify’s artist bio is a confusing mix of words that enhances their artificial aura: “There is something quietly mesmerizing about The Velvet Sundown. You don’t just listen to them, you drift into them… They aren’t trying to revive the past. They are rewriting it. Their sound feels like the memory of a time that never actually happened… but somehow they make it feel real.”
Growing concern in the music industry
There is growing concern regarding artificial intelligence on streaming platforms and elsewhere. A December report in Harper’s Magazine claimed that Spotify is supplementing playlists with “ghost artists” to reduce royalty payouts, while a separate study from the same month indicated that music creators could lose up to 24% of their revenue by 2028 due to a lack of protection and policies against AI.
Nevertheless, some artists have embraced the technology. In 2023, artist Grimes launched Elf.Tech, an AI software allowing users to record music that transforms their voices into Grimes’ voice. More recently, ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus revealed he is writing a new musical with the help of artificial intelligence, while producer Timbaland announced a new company called Stage Zero and its first signing, an AI artist named TaTa.
Conclusion: Blurry lines between art and algorithm
The case of The Velvet Sundown represents a striking example of how artificial intelligence is blurring the boundaries between human creativity and algorithmic production. Is it a clever art experiment, a commercial operation designed to exploit existing systems, or simply a talented programmer exploring the limits of technology? Regardless of the answer, its existence raises pressing questions about authenticity, ownership, and creativity in the digital age. It serves as a reminder that the future of music may not just be about who writes the songs, but also *what* writes them.
