Is the most popular song played on Australian radio…
Music experts and industry figures are questioning if Australian producer Josh Fawaz used generative AI to create his viral cover of Madonna's Like a Prayer
- Incident date
- Apr 2024
- Target
- Josh Fawaz
In April 2024, an Australian producer named Josh Fawaz achieved significant success with a cover of Madonna’s Like a Prayer, which reached the number one spot on the National Radio Airplay chart. Despite his rise to fame, the track has sparked intense debate among musicians and industry experts regarding its origins. Critics suggest the song displays hallmarks typical of generative AI music tools, specifically citing heavy compression, vocal artifacts, and production quality that deviates from traditional human-made recordings.
What happened
The controversy centers on whether Fawaz used generative AI—which can create full musical compositions from simple text prompts—rather than traditional production methods. While Fawaz has claimed on social media that he uses AI merely as a "tool" and has been releasing music since the 2010s, experts like RMIT senior research fellow Sam Whiting argue that the track exhibits technical characteristics common to AI generators like Suno. Producer and DJ Needs No Sleep, who first encountered the track via a DJ promoter service, highlighted "sloppy drums" and low-quality files as evidence of AI involvement.
The debate has broader implications for the music industry, particularly concerning copyright and royalty distribution. Critics point out that if AI-generated content is treated as human-authored, it diverts royalties away from artists who rely on those payments for their livelihood. Furthermore, the incident highlights a lack of transparency in commercial radio, which currently lacks a code of practice requiring the disclosure of AI-generated music. While the Australasian Performing Right Association noted that original copyright holders like Madonna and Patrick Leonard still receive royalties for the underlying composition, the case has fueled calls from the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance for mandatory watermarking of AI content and updated copyright laws to address the impact of AI scraping on the creative industries.