We are the music makers

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  • Japan's JASRAC won't collect for fully AI-made songs, and wants the training exception in Article 30-4 changed

    Japan's biggest music rights society will only manage the human-made parts of a song, and songwriters must say which parts AI made when they register. It is also asking for Article 30-4, which lets AI firms train on works without permission, to give creators a choice. That puts Japan's songwriters further from a say over training than their counterparts in the EU or the UK.

    Artist rightsvia Japan Copyright Office (Agency for Cultural Affairs)

  • Xania Monet, a year on: her manager has an AI label deal, and a lawsuit now targets the name

    A trademark suit filed in Connecticut on 10 June names Hallwood Media, Xania Monet creator Telisha Jones and a company called TJM Inc. It comes months after Monet's manager launched an AI-and-human label venture with Create Music Group. Both raise the same question about an AI act. If copyright barely reaches the voice, the name is the main thing anyone can own.

    AIvia PacerMonitor (US District Court, District of Connecticut docket)

  • Studio One is now Fender Studio Pro 8, and Moises's AI stem tools are built in

    PreSonus's Studio One became Fender Studio Pro 8 in January, and the 8.1 update in June built Moises's stem separation, stem generation and voice conversion into the DAW. The catch for anyone who prefers to own their tools is that a DAW you can buy outright now comes with a monthly AI allowance.

    Releasesvia Moises Newsroom

  • Anime is Japan's music export engine: what 'IRIS OUT' and Ado teach artists about sync

    Kenshi Yonezu's anime film theme "IRIS OUT" topped Billboard JAPAN's first-half 2026 chart after reaching No. 5 on the Billboard Global 200, the highest yet for a Japanese-language song. Japan's trade ministry puts the music industry's 2024 overseas income at ¥72.58bn, and most of the money it can trace arrives as streams, not sync fees. The lesson for artists anywhere is that a placement is where discovery starts, and the money comes later.

    Industryvia Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)

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