AI 'artist' Xania Monet debuts on multiple Billboard charts
@xania_monet

AI 'artist' Xania Monet debuts on multiple Billboard charts

The rise of AI-generated music has reached a new, and unfortunate, milestone. Xania Monet, an AI-created avatar, has officially reached multiple Billboard charts.

Monet is the creation of poet Telisha Nikki Jones, who writes the lyrics and then uses the controversial AI music generator Suno to complete the songs. According to Billboard, she landed at No. 30 on the Adult R&B Airplay chart this week for her song “How Was I Supposed to Know.” In addition, Monet appeared on the Hot R&B Songs chart for the same track, and on the Hot Gospel Songs chart for “Let Go, Let God.”

Monet currently has around 150,000 followers on Instagram and 1.2 million monthly listeners on Spotify. There has already been a bidding war for the AI artist, which eventually resulted in a multi-million-dollar record deal with Hallwood Media. 

Many artists and listeners have expressed growing concern about AI’s expanding role in music creation. Still, Romel Murphy, who somehow serves as Monet’s manager, told CNN that there’s no intent to replace human singers or songwriters.

“AI doesn’t replace the artist. That’s not our goal at all. It doesn’t diminish the creativity and doesn’t take away from the human experience,” he said. “It’s a new frontier and like anything would change some people are receptive and some people are apprehensive.”

Billboard believes there may already be multiple AI-assisted songs that have charted, though it’s difficult to determine exactly which ones—or how much AI was involved in their creation. Earlier this year, the AI “band” The Velvet Sundown made headlines for reaching 1.5 million monthly listeners on Spotify, though they never officially charted on Billboard.

Drew P. Simmons

Buffalo, NY

Go Bills

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