The fake song “Heart on My Sleeves” is to be entered into the running for the music prize.
The controversial AI piece “Heart on My Sleeve” with computer-generated voices from Drake and The Weeknd in a duet should actually be nominated for the upcoming Grammy Awards.
“Heart on My Sleeve” was released on various streaming services in April 2023. Someone called “Ghostwriter” – a previously unknown person – was responsible for its creation. With the help of artificial intelligence, Ghostwriter was able to almost perfectly recreate the voices of the two Canadian stars Drake and The Weeknd. The beat and flow of the song are also close to their respective styles.
The piece caused a stir online and Universal Music immediately took action to cease and desist. The song disappeared from Spotify, Soundcloud, YouTube and other platforms. Only short excerpts remain online. According to Universal, this is a copyright violation. Nevertheless, Ghostwriter is now trying to put “Heart on My Sleeve” into the running for a Grammy Award. The categories for which the piece was submitted are “Best Rap Song” and “Song of the Year”.
In fact, there is even a chance that the nominations will be accepted, as Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. explains. In exactly these two categories, the songwriters are honored, not the performing artists themselves. Mason explained to the “New York Times” that “Heart on My Sleeve” is an original composition despite the fake voices that Ghostwriter is responsible for as a human creator. However, the song is not commercially distributed worldwide, which could still stand in the way of a nomination. The decision is not yet final.
Listen to an excerpt from “Heart on My Sleeves” here: