musicians

Musicians have been left out of settlements between major record labels and AI companies, a new lawsuit alleges.

The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM), which has 70,000 members, said Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group “received significant compensation” from the AI companies for past copyright violations and licensed “substantial” portions of their music catalogs to them, but haven’t shared that with the musicians.

UMG and WMG sued AI companies Udio and Suno in 2024, accusing them of copyright infringement. Both companies settled with Udio last year. In November, WMG announced a partnership with Suno, but Universal Music Group’s lawsuit against Suno is pending.

“While the Defendants protected their own interests and created a significant source of new revenue with the retrospective settlements and prospective licenses, they have refused to compensate the musicians whose work — created with their own instruments and through their talent, creativity, and hard work — is fed into AI machines for profit,” AFM said in its lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Friday.

AFM said it believes the AI settlements fall under the “new use” provision of its collective bargaining agreements, which requires music companies to notify the union of new licenses for purposes not covered by the contract and to compensate musicians, whose work was used to train AI models.

UMG and WMG said in statements that they are in negotiations on a collective bargaining agreement with AFM.

“Warner Music Group is growing the value of music by establishing guardrails and architecting a healthy AI ecosystem on behalf of artists everywhere,” the company said in a statement.

Universal Music Group said it will continue to work to resolve issues during the negotiations.

“Universal Music Group has been at the forefront of protecting the rights and advancing the interests of artists and songwriters in the age of AI — striking responsible AI licensing agreements to ensure they are compensated, leading the charge for legislation to further protect them and taking legal action against bad actors,” the company said in a statement.
“We expect to continue our strong working relationship with the AFM built on mutual respect for the talented musicians in our industry.”

AI has become more popular among consumers, dramatically changing the landscape in the entertainment industry. Many startups have popped up allowing users to type text prompts into AI systems to generate original songs, video clips and stories.

Some creatives say the AI tools help them brainstorm or illustrate bold ideas on a budget. But critics have raised concerns about whether AI systems are trained on copyrighted works without permission or payment to artists. Others are worried AI could eliminate their livelihoods.

Udio said it would create a new platform that would train on licensed and authorized music with artists having the ability to opt-in. Suno agreed to change its platform, launching new licensed models, and place download restrictions.

Bradford Auerbach, a partner at law firm OGC, said he expects to see more of these types of lawsuits filed by unions.

“You’ve got the unions always protecting the status quo, so you’ve got this invariable conflict of new technology coming in, and moving the cheese for a lot of people that were accustomed to having their business set up the way it was,” Auerbach said.

Thirty-five years after his death, jazz giant Miles Davis, who would have turned 100 years old Tuesday, remains a truly larger-than-life figure in music and well beyond.

Still possessor of the biggest-selling jazz record in history, “Kind of Blue,” Davis casts a huge influence over the whole music world for his uncompromising artistic vision, constant evolution, style and more. Though he came from jazz, he may be the biggest rock star there ever was. Talk to any musician, regardless of genre, and they will tell you Davis defined swagger and cool. He had a vibe unlike that of anyone else.

In honor of Davis’ centennial, The Times spoke to an array of notable artists from all walks of music, some who knew and played with him, some fans of the man, but all agreed, Miles Davis was and is a singular force in music, an artist like no other in his vision, passion and feeling for the music. In short, there was only one Miles Davis.

‘A complete innovator’

Chuck D, rapper: I like Miles Davis and all the exterior aesthetics. I like the Blue Note album covers, Prestige album covers, his style, his way of life.

Cindy Blackman Santana and her husband Carlos Santana in 2019.

(Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

Cindy Blackman Santana, drummer: Stylistically, Miles was a complete innovator. I remember hearing him say that he didn’t play right if he wasn’t dressed right. That is completely something that inspires me as well, because it becomes not only what you’re putting out on your horn or your drums or your guitar or your piano, but it’s your whole being that is expressing this innovative approach to music and to life.

Bilal, singer: If you play the music you’ve got to look the part, and it was almost like he got into a movie role or something like that. But he was always into the clothes … It was almost like every era had a different outfit. But, yeah, I definitely take his style. The clothes make you feel a certain way to play that way. So that’s the vibe. You’ve got to have that character, that attitude.

Emmet Cohen, left, performs with Terence Blanchard at Lincoln Center in 2025.

(Slaven Vlasic / Getty Images for Find Your Light)

Emmet Cohen, pianist and composer: I think when you listen to Miles’ records you can really appreciate them all the way through and there’s something in there for all sides of humanity. Whether it was the Prestige records that he pumped out in a couple of days, or there was “Birth of the Cool,” he just knew how to assemble musicians and let them tell their stories. And the storytelling is really where I think the deepest connections are made. He was a rock star, but he had a story to tell. And that always comes first.

‘Always evolving’

Guitarist Lenny Kaye performs onstage at Carnegie Hall in 2023.

(Noam Galai / Getty Images for Tibet House US)

Lenny Kaye, guitarist: He started in the bebop era, with the immortals of that moment in time. But I always got the sense that he was looking for something else. He didn’t want to participate in the faster-than-light speed changes and virtuosity. So, I really respect the fact that when he moved into “Birth of the Cool,” he pulled it back so he could inject more of his human self into it. And over the years, he kept on doing that, “Sketches of Spain,” “Kind of Blue,” one of the most jazz friendly records of all time.

Flea, bassist: Every time Miles changed it up, he destroyed everything that came before. He is the ultimate artist, always evolving, always coming organically from the depths. His music is the warmest and the wildest.

Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers released a solo jazz album in March.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Bilal: I really like his electric era, but I would say I keep discovering and rediscovering stuff from Miles that I’m just like, “Damn, man. It’s like it’s another artist because he went through so many different changes.” … The other day I found his “Sketches of Spain” record. I put it on. I was like, “This is crazy. I forgot he was into this too.”

Wyclef Jean, rapper: When you go through Miles’ whole catalog, you see you can have quiet days. You can have loud days. You can have explosive days. But the key is that consistency. And that discipline.

Kaye: I respect Miles. For me, he’s an artist that transcends the jazz genre. He’s so alert to the shifting moods of the culture, the directions of the music. And what I find fascinating about him is his ability to morph into new styles and to keep challenging himself. One thing about Miles is that he doesn’t repeat who he is.

Musician Ron Carter in 2011.

(Theo Wargo / Getty Images)

Ron Carter, bassist: We always thought that we were honored to have Miles hire us out of other guys who were available to him. The first few gigs, we had a couple of weeks up and down the West Coast, and everybody but Miles was trying to find out what the tunes were, what the changes were. I was just trying to do what I thought was necessary to make this guy think he hired the right guy and make the band sound good. … Whatever his method was, it was successful.

Ibrahim Maalouf, trumpeter: Quincy [Jones] always spoke about Miles not just as a genius, but as someone who knew when to move on. And that’s a lesson I still carry with me every day.

Kaye: In “Bitches Brew” he created the template for what would be jazz fusion and made rock ‘n’ roll an important part of his evolution. Just an artist who never stands still and that is what I personally respect and honor within his work. When he saw what an artist like Jimi Hendrix was doing, he thought, ‘Yeah, I know how to access that and not be Jimi Hendrix. I can be myself.’ He understood the tides of cultural transformation as much or better than most musicians of the 20th century.

Don Was performs onstage at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville in 2022.

(Jason Davis / Getty Images for Americana Music)

Don Was, musician and producer: In life, as exemplified by music, if you don’t change, you stagnate. And the thing about Miles that really stands out, I think, is that he was always willing to risk losing his audience in order to keep moving forward. He was courageous in every era, including eras when maybe courage wasn’t held at a premium.

‘More than that’

Maalouf: For me, as a trumpet player, of course, the musical influence; space, phrasing, silence, we can talk about this for hours. But I think that more than that, there’s an attitude.

Ibrahim Maalouf performs at the Paris 2024 Cultural Olympiad at L’Olympia on July 24, 2024, in Paris France.

(Julien M. Hekimian / Getty Images)

Trombone Shorty, musician: Miles has inspired me because of that attitude, ‘I’m going to do what I want.’ He was playing what he felt in whatever time period or whatever decade he was inspired by. He really embraced that tremendously. And that’s always the thing that I admire about him as a person and as a musician. Whatever the spirit is, he’s going to go with that. That’s what I always got from Miles.

Nas, rapper: With Miles it wasn’t just about the music he made, it was about how he carried himself as an artist and a pioneer. His impact on me personally is as much on a human level as it is on the artist level.

Trombone Shorty performs at the Anaheim Convention Center in 2015.

(Jesse Grant / Getty Images for NAMM)

Trombone Shorty: The swagger, he may have created the swag.

Vince Wilburn Jr., nephew and drummer, who now co-manages Davis’ estate: He liked to catch things, that’s why the tape kept continuously rolling, because he said it was songs inside of songs.

Carlos Santana, guitarist: “I recommend that people who never heard of Miles Davis, I’ll say start with “Kind of Blue,” then move on to “Bitches Brew.” Because the thing about Miles Davis is that he teaches people who have never meditated how to stop and be coherent about absoluteness. In one note, Miles can play absoluteness. One note for Miles, like Billie Holiday, like Cindy says, that’s enough to understand all the whys and all the reasons why it’s sacred to be alive.

Was: He probably changed the face of music more than anybody did, at least four or five times. Maybe more than that. It’s a combination of mastery and an unstoppable spirit of adventure that I think make him unique. Because he was absolutely a master of harmony, rhythm, of creating a vibe. Yet he loved upsetting the cart and I think went out of his way to create friction musically, within the band, to keep things stirred up constantly and make every day an adventure. It requires tremendous courage. But also, supreme excellence to do it on the level that he did with the level of musicians that he surrounded himself with. That’s another thing, too. He wasn’t just the most innovative man on the horn. His genius was also as a curator of human chemistry.”

‘Larger than life’

Musician Wyclef Jean performs in 2023.

(Christian Petersen / Getty Images)

Jean: The main thing that I learned from Miles at a very young age is just the braveness, you can’t be scared to just go. Going doesn’t just mean learning one part of it. It means learning the entire metrics. … When it comes to Miles, he’s just a complete teacher; even on how he sees art, how he sees shapes, and also there’s a whole part of Miles that’s tough love when it comes to it. So, all of that instills character.

Bilal: As an older musician, you could see all of the building blocks are in those records. If you take some of those records out, I don’t know where jazz would be. You can see the essential building blocks.

Izzy Escobar, singer: Miles Davis made jazz feel cinematic to me. When I listen to songs like “It Never Entered My Mind” or “Flamenco Sketches,” there’s mystery, romance, restraint and tension in every note. Nothing feels overdone, yet somehow it says everything. As a songwriter, that’s deeply inspiring because the best music doesn’t just sound good … it creates an entire world you can step into. I think that’s why his influence has lasted a century. His music still feels fearless, elegant and emotionally alive — all of which never go out of style.

Jorma Kaukonen, guitarist: I had always thought of jazz as somewhat of a haughty art form. Probably because at the time many of the time signatures and chordal progressions that Miles used were over the head of a young guitar player still functioning in the blues and folk idioms. … The growing rock and art movement in the Bay Area in that era taught us to eschew boundaries and labels, and it became possible to see similarities and possibilities with jazz music that would have gone previously unnoticed. Our harmonic tendencies were nowhere near as complex, but they were rapidly becoming more sophisticated thanks to our exposure to such great improvisers as Miles! Miles knew no boundaries.

Jean: One thing that I learned from Miles is someone can have the best technique. They could be moving around. But if you can dig and play from your soul, this instrument just becomes a vessel of sound and orbit, bro, it’s over. There’s a connection with the soul. And I wouldn’t be able to do that, bro, if I didn’t have people like Miles to really teach me how to hear.

Theo Croker plays trumpet the Kennedy Center in 2018.

(Paul Morigi / Getty Images for Thelonious Monk)

Theo Croker, trumpeter: He was definitely a larger-than-life figure. And it encourages me to be a larger-than-life figure. Growing up as a kid, we sit in a room all day and play trumpet for hours. You see somebody like Miles Davis and you’re like, “Wow, I can be a rock star.” Because I couldn’t sing, otherwise, you end up being a pop star, Prince, Michael Jackson and Stevie and all that. But Miles was that for the trumpet, of course. So, it’s so much bigger than music.

Musician Mia Doi Todd performing in 2012.

(Paul Redmond)

Mia Doi Todd, musician and singer: Miles Davis was such an outstanding band leader, bringing together a group of musicians and seeking to break the boundaries. That is what I look to him most for as a celestial mentor, being a band leader and creating those sonic landscapes. The records that I love most of his are from that electronic jazz fusion era, which weren’t his most popular at the time. I love “On the Corner.” I’m a person of mixed race, so the records that he was bringing together, all these different musical elements, those are the ones that I really admire … “I wish I could play in that band.”

Maalouf: There’s this idea that music is not about providing something. It’s about searching. It’s about staying alive artistically. I think that strength goes far beyond music, it’s really a message for all the musicians that we are. Never stay where people expect you to stay. Every time the audience thought they understood him, he changed direction. And I think that’s definitely one of the most inspiring parts of his musical life.

Was: I never met him. But he was a heroic figure to me as a teenager, very much in the same way that simultaneously, like Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones were, or John Lennon was, or Allen Ginsberg was.

Bilal performs in New York City in 2023.

(Roy Rochlin / Getty Images)

Bilal: That [artistic vision] is a major influence that I take from Miles. … I always approach the music in that way where you got to do your own thing. You’ve got to have something to say, and you’ve got to want to evolve and always look for ways to grow and change and with the music. Miles was quintessential at that.

Trombone Shorty: To me, Miles Davis was a real rock star. It just wasn’t the sound. When he walked on stage … he looked the way that the music sounded to him. … And as he grew, he just really embraced everything that was coming to him, and he didn’t run away from it. He wanted to have his influence and also be tremendously influenced by things that were happening. He was just the coolest; when they say cool, Miles Davis has to be next to that word.

‘Playing within the language that he created’

Nas performs in New York City in 2018.

(Bennett Raglin / Getty Images for Jenn-Air)

Nas: I think Miles’ impact on every inch of music after him is the most impressive part. Musicians from every genre speak on his influence. It has no language or cultural barriers.

Jean: I would literally tell everybody to do a deep dive and start with early Miles, start from the bebop and the blues, don’t just go in. I started my daughter with “Birth of the Cool.” Now she’s vibing and slowly working her way up.

Musician Vince Wilburn Jr. in 2011.

(Theo Wargo / Getty Images)

Wilburn Jr.: Style, creativity, forever evolving, ever looking back, unapologetic. Lenny White used to say everybody wanted to live and be like Miles, all the musicians. You have Miles, and then you have everyone else.

Santana: Miles is what I call a sacred rascal, a divine rascal, a genius. When I’ve been in the room with Herbie [Hancock], Wayne [Shorter] and Tony [Williams], and the name Miles comes up, they all stop. It has such an impact on all of them to this day it shows that Miles is Da Vinci, Stravinsky, Picasso. Collect all the geniuses of this planet, and that’s what Miles is in one note. In one note, he reveals more because in one note, he teaches an individual how to hug infinity with emotions.

Kaye: I think of him as a lodestar for someone who wants to continually move music forward into the future because that’s what music is about. When you play music, you’re moving from one note to the next and creating the future of that piece. I just find Miles a fascinating creature of transformation. Miles, for all his artistic innovation, was a pop star.

Maalouf: Miles Davis’ legacy is not only a sound, it’s a mindset. He gave all of us the permission to be many people in one lifetime. It feels to me it’s the secret and he was generous enough to do it himself and show the world and especially the jazz world that is not always easy to please that someone can be many people in one lifetime. It’s not only true for music. It’s true for everything in life.

Cohen: He’s always on the cutting edge of the next thing and the next group of musicians that he finds. The story in that is that there’s constant change, constant evolution, and to find the thread throughout is kind of the meaning of life. And to play his music is the same thing. He created a language. So, when we play his music, we’re playing within the language that he created.

Was: “That’s why he’s that cat. He’s the most rebellious musician of all time, I think. He was the complete package man, no one more innovative or influential.

TAYLOR SWIFT is proving she doesn’t just top the charts – but is also helping pay the bills of thousands of artists in the industry.

Insiders said the pop powerhouse could be behind a payday worth up to $800million for fellow musicians, thanks to a savvy little move she tucked into her record deal years ago.

When Taylor signed with Universal Music Group in 2018, she had assurances that if the label ever cashed in its Spotify shares, the artists had to get a slice of the pie.

Now UMG is preparing to flog part of its multi-billion-pound stake in the streaming giant, and a chunky wedge of that cash could be heading straight to the people making hits.

It is thought between $500million and $800million could be shared out, meaning a serious payday for everyone from global superstars to artists still making their way up.

Drake, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande and Kendrick Lamar are all in the mix.

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Taylor won’t be out of pocket either, as this will only add another layer to her $1.8billion empire.

From reclaiming her masters to reshaping how streaming pays out, she’s made a habit of shaking up the system.

And this might just be her most generous plot twist yet.

LEO IS LORD OF THE GRINS

ONE Day and Bridget Jones actor Leo Woodall is on to a grinner as he spends an evening with girlfriend Meghann Fahy.

The smiling couple put on a united front at The King’s Trust annual gala in New York on Wednesday, proving they’re still very much an item.

Brit Leo and the US actress fell for each other after meeting on the set of The White Lotus in 2022, and now live together in the Big Apple.

We’ll soon be able to see plenty more of him on screen, as he has landed a major role in The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum, which hits cinemas next year.

BREAK-UP AND BABY BATTLE IN NEW JESY DOCUMENTARY

JESY NELSON is making a documentary about her battle to overhaul baby screening laws.

The former Little Mix singer will launch an hour-long film at Sheffield Docfest on June 11, in which she is shown coming to terms with her twin girls’ diagnosis with SMA type 1.

It will also show her dealing with the breakdown of her relationship with rapper Zion Foster.

Jesy revealed in January that daughters Ocean and Story had the genetic disorder, which results in muscle degeneration.

She said the impact could have been prevented if it had been detected earlier, leading to her fight to get heel prick tests for all newborns.

The film is said to be “raw and powerful”.

Its rundown adds: “The documentary follows Jesy as she comes to terms with what the diagnosis means for her girls, adapts to the everyday challenges of their conditions, and finds her footing as a single mother after the break-up of her relationship.

“It’s a portrait of motherhood, resilience and the fierce determination that comes from knowing that a simple change in the system can save lives.”

The documentary follows on from Jesy Nelson: Life After Little Mix, which aired on Prime Video earlier this year, although no date has been set for its release.

OLIVIA IN A BUNNY MOOD

OLIVIA RODRIGO is ready to get back in the swing of things by announcing a massive tour, less than a year after headlining Glastonbury.

The singer, who posed in a flowing dress and bunny shoes for Cosmopolitan magazine, will hit the road for her third run of headline shows, called The Unraveled Tour, in September.

UK fans might face a scrap for tickets when they go on pre-sale next Tuesday ahead of a general sale on Thursday.

Her only dates in Blighty so far are four shows at London’s O2 Arena, in April next year.

It comes ahead of the release of her third album, You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In Love, on June 12.

She told Cosmo of the record: “I was really excited to write about joy, love, and passion in a way that I had never really done.

“Most of my big songs are about being sad, angry, heartbroken.

“Sometimes I listen back to it and I cringe.

“It’s cringier to be happy.

“I cringe, but I’m free.”

MADONNA and Sabrina Carpenter have dropped the biggest release of the week with their collaboration Bring Your Love.

The pair finally put the song out this morning, a fortnight after performing it at Coachella festival in the US.

Also back today is Becky Hill with Hands On Me, while Bleachers have released I’m Not Joking from their fifth album Everyone For Ten Minutes, which will be out on May 22.

I also recommend Sunderland artist Tom A. Smith’s six-track EP Put On A Record Tommy, featuring Happy Mondays collaborator Rowetta on the title track.

KRIS JENNER is so paranoid, she can’t go for a walk without security by her side.

On her daughter Khloe Kardashian‘s podcast, Khloe In Wonderland, Kris said she lives “crime stories” in her head every day.

Kris said: “I was on vacation and I felt like taking the bicycle out in front of the villa and riding down to the restaurant.

“I thought, no, because what if I’m riding the bike and somebody jumps out of the bushes, grabs the bike, throws me in the back of a van and takes off?”

Khloe added: “My mom won’t go on a walk in the neighbourhood without security following her in a vehicle.”