Australia has banned largely or wholly AI-generated songs from its official music charts, with new rules requiring eligible releases to be substantially created and performed by humans.
Songs largely or wholly created by artificial intelligence have been banned from Australia’s music charts under new rules requiring releases to be “substantially human-made”.
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) introduced the changes this week, saying they would help “promote the human nature of artistry”.
The move follows controversy over an AI-assisted cover of Madonna’s Like A Prayer by Australian DJ Josh Fawaz.
The track recently topped the ARIA dance singles chart and reached number two on the overall chart.
It has also become a regular feature on commercial radio and has been streamed more than 48 million times on Spotify.
Fawaz added generative AI credits to the song after facing criticism.
Under ARIA’s new rules, musicians can still use AI tools, including for mastering, drum machines and Auto-Tune.
However, humans must have written the song and performed its lead vocal and primary instruments.
Artists must declare AI use when submitting music for chart consideration.
ARIA said songs could be removed retrospectively if they were found to be largely AI-generated.
If an excluded track had reached number one, the organisation could ask for awards recognising the achievement to be returned.
Artists and their representatives will have the right to challenge exclusions.
ARIA chief executive Annabelle Herd said Australian musicians were competing for attention in an increasingly crowded market.
She said: “We are not interested in promoting or celebrating the success of AI-generated music that does not contain human artistry.”
Herd said the charts should accommodate artists who use AI as part of their creative process, but warned against music generated entirely by systems trained on artists’ recordings.
She remarked: “A chart that rewards unlicensed AI output would undercut the very basis of the recorded music we exist to represent.”
The updated rules also exclude releases where there are concerns about artificial streaming or chart manipulation.
Australia follows other efforts to keep AI-generated music out of official charts.
Earlier this year, a song was removed from Sweden’s music charts because it was created by AI.
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said in July that similar AI guidelines would be introduced across Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.
The move has received support from Australian electronic duo Peking Duk.
Band member Adam Hyde previously said AI-generated music was “removing the human experience from life”.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has also promised stronger protections for Australian creatives, including allowing writers and musicians to decide whether their work can be used to train AI systems.
AI-generated songs banned from Australia’s music charts
