Musicians seek right to refuse AI training in November label talks

Studio musicians want the right to say no when their recordings are used to train artificial intelligence systems. The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) will press that demand when it restarts talks on its major-label contract in November.

The union, which represents more than 80,000 professional players in the United States, has launched a public campaign called 'Human Made, Human Paid' to set out its case, Rolling Stone reported. The talks cover the Sound Recording Labor Agreement, the union contract that sets pay and benefits including royalty rates, the payments for reuse of recordings, and health cover.

The AFM is negotiating with Universal Music Group, Sony Music, Warner Music and Hollywood Records, the Disney-owned label. It wants new AI rules written into that deal.

Consent is the core. The union is asking for musicians to approve or refuse the use of their work to train AI models. It is also seeking clear credit and payment when AI material draws on their playing, and transparency around label licensing deals involving AI.

The effort is led by AFM International President Tino Gagliardi. His team says working musicians should be asked, named and paid when their sound feeds new technology.

The November talks follow months of pressure. The AFM held a rally for AI protections and fair pay in March, according to the union itself, AFM. In June, a musicians union sued record labels over AI licensing, Reuters reported.

Singers have already secured separate safeguards. In April 2024, SAG-AFTRA, the union for singers and actors, reached an agreement with major record labels that included AI protections, Reuters reported.

For listeners, this means the argument is not about robots replacing bands. It is about who gets asked, credited and paid when a machine learns from a human performance. The November session will show whether labels agree to put that promise in writing.