BRITs stars support Make It Fair protest against government proposals on AI and copyright

Some of the UK's biggest artists united in protest of the government's proposals on AI and copyright at last weekend's BRITs.

The likes of Myles Smith, Lola Young, FLO, The Last Dinner Party and Rachel Chinouriri lent their voices in calling on the UK government to value and protect copyright, joining the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John, Dua Lipa, Sam Fender, Kate Bush and others.

The Don’t Let AI Steal Our Music campaign, launched by BPI, is a continuation of the Make It Fair campaign, which launched across news media with the support of the UK’s creative industries on February 25. It also follows the release of Is This What We Want?; a silent album protesting the government’s proposals, supported by over 1000 musicians.

It comes alongside the launch of a brand-new website, dontletaistealourmusic.com, with more information on the campaign.  

The UK government is proposing changes to copyright law, which would make it legal for global AI firms to train generative AI models using the UK’s music, books, film and more, without the need for authorisation or compensation from the works’ creators or rights-holders.

According to proposals, creators and rights-holders would - in theory - be given the option to ‘opt-out’ of having their work used to train AI models – though other markets have shown that opt-out schemes are unworkable in practice, and ineffective in protecting against misuse and theft.

Copyright law specifically protects original works on authorship from being copied, distributed, or performed without the copyright holder’s permission.

Dr Jo Twist OBE, CEO of the BPI, said:

"This campaign’s message to the Government is clear: don’t let AI steal our music. Thousands of Britain’s most beloved artists and creators have already spoken out against the proposed weakening of copyright law, which would have a devastating impact on the UK’s world-leading creative industries.

"We greatly value the artists and students who added their powerful voices to the campaign over the weekend. They represent the incredible human creativity that exists all across the UK and is so vital to protect."

Images: BRIT Awards