Major record companies in the US, such as Universal Music Group (UMG) and Warner Music Group (WMG), proceeded with out-of-court settlements and legal licensing of their musical works to the GenAI platforms Suno and Udio. Seemingly, this constitutes a major victory for the field of music creation. But what happens when the contributors to these musical works are pushed aside and, above all, are not paid for this new use of their works?
An answer to this question comes from the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), filing a lawsuit in the New York Federal Court against the two record giants.
At the center of the accusations is the claim of violation of the collective labor agreement (SRLA), based on Article 21 of the SRLA concerning "new use."
The AFM argues that the use of audio recordings for training GenAI models constitutes an entirely new commercial use of musical performances. According to the collective agreement Sound Recording Labor Agreement (SRLA), companies are required to notify and pay musicians when their works are utilized outside their initial contractual purposes.
The union denounces that the companies secured significant revenues and future profits for themselves, leaving the performing musicians themselves completely unpaid and uninformed.
The AFM demands justice, financial participation in the revenues from licensing agreements with AI companies, and full transparency regarding exactly which recordings and which of its members who participated in these recordings have been included in these platforms.
In 2024, the two record labels took legal action accusing Suno and Udio of massive copyright infringement of artists' rights, while after the 2025 settlements, the record labels licensed the two AI companies for works of AFM members, without, however, payments for performing musicians. Therefore, despite UMG and WMG's claims of a "victory for the creative community," the AFM denounces that the companies did not share the revenues with the creators.
The record giants are now asking for the dismissal of the AFM lawsuit, with the judge of the case setting September 11 as the deadline for submitting briefs.
This is a case that gains even greater importance, as AFM and the record labels are simultaneously negotiating the new SRLA contract, with GenAI at the center of deliberations.