LONDON — Sony Music requested the removal of more than 135,000 songs by fraudsters impersonating its artists on streaming services. The deepfake songs were created using generative AI and targeted some of Sony Music's biggest acts including Beyoncé, Queen, and Harry Styles.

Since last March, Sony Music identified about 60,000 songs falsely purporting to feature its roster of artists. Other acts that may have been affected include Bad Bunny, Miley Cyrus, and Mark Ronson. "In the worst cases, [the deepfakes] potentially damage a release campaign or tarnish the reputation of an artist," said Dennis Kooker, president of Sony Music's global digital business.

The revelation of the removal request coincided with the launch of the Global Music Report in London. The practice known as streaming manipulation involves uploading songs by fake artists to streaming services and artificially boosting their play counts to gain royalty payments. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, AI has "supercharged" the practice of streaming manipulation.

Victoria Oakley, CEO of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, called on streaming services to implement tools that can identify fake or AI-generated music when it is uploaded. "I hate to say it, but it's very simple to fix," Oakley said. "We've seen a lot of governments really grappling with this issue because they are trying to square a circle: They are trying to protect creativity and at the same time encourage innovation."

The streaming company Deezer has software capable of identifying AI-generated music and claims that 34% of the songs submitted to its service are categorized as AI-generated. "Is it perfect? I'm sure it's not, but it's open and it's transparent, and it allows people to understand what is happening," Kooker said.

"Without proper identification, fans can't distinguish between genuine human creativity versus unauthorised, AI-generated content, which risks creating confusion, undermining trust, and impacting user experiences," Kooker said. "Transparency shouldn't be optional, it's the foundation of a fair and sustainable music ecosystem."

Recorded music revenues grew by 6.4% last year, reaching $31.7 billion (£23.8 billion). Recorded music revenues grew for the 11th consecutive year. The UK was the world's third largest music market last year.