UK Musicians Protest AI Copyright Law with ‘Silent Album’
The U.K. government’s push to attract artificial intelligence companies to the region is facing a significant challenge from the creative community. Proposed changes to copyright law could allow AI developers to train their models using artists’ work found online, without requiring permission or payment, unless creators actively choose to “opt out.” This has sparked strong opposition.
In a creative act of resistance, over 1,000 musicians have released a “silent album,” as a form of protest. The album, entitled “Is This What We Want?” features contributions, or rather, absences of contributions, from a diverse array of artists, including Kate Bush, Imogen Heap, and classical composers like Max Richter and Thomas Hewitt Jones. The project also includes co-writing credits from numerous others, such as Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, Billy Ocean, members of The Clash, Yusuf / Cat Stevens, and Hans Zimmer.
This isn’t just another charity project. Instead of music, the album comprises recordings of empty studios and performance spaces, which is a symbolic representation of the artists’ belief in the potential impact of the planned copyright law changes. Hewitt Jones described his contribution as recordings of his studio, “You can hear my cats moving around,” Hewitt Jones said. “I have two cats in my studio who bother me all day when I’m working.”
The album’s 12 tracks spell out a direct message: “The British government must not legalize music theft to benefit AI companies.”
This silent album is the latest in a series of actions in the U.K. to draw attention to the handling of copyright in the era of AI training. Similar protests are occurring in other markets, including the United States, reflecting global concerns among artists.
Ed Newton-Rex, the organizer of the project, is also leading a broader campaign against AI training conducted without proper licensing. He has initiated a petition that has garnered signatures from more than 47,000 writers, visual artists, actors, and others in creative industries. Nearly 10,000 of these signatures were added in the five weeks following the U.K. government’s announcement of its ambitious AI strategy.
Newton-Rex has also been “running a nonprofit in AI for the last year where we’ve been [certifying] companies that basically don’t scrape and train on great work without permission.” Newton-Rex, who previously developed Jukedeck, a music composition platform powered by AI, has experience working on both sides of the issue. His platform was acquired by TikTok. Following that, he’s worked at tech companies like Snap and Stability. Now, Newton-Rex is focused on building a future that protects the work of the past.
The timing of the album release is significant, coinciding with the planned changes to U.K. copyright law. This legislation would require artists who object to their work being used for AI training to actively “opt out.” Newton-Rex believes this places artists in a difficult position. There isn’t a functional opt-out mechanism in place. Furthermore, there’s no clear way to track what specific material has been used in any given AI system.
“We know that opt-out schemes are just not taken up,” he said. “This is just going to give 90% [to] 95% of people’s work to AI companies. That’s without a doubt.”
As a potential solution, the artists are considering distributing their work in markets with stronger copyright protections. Hewitt Jones, who, as a member of an earlier protest, threw a working keyboard into a harbor in Kent (and later retrieved it, broken) has mentioned interest in distributing his music in future in markets like Switzerland.
“We’ve been told for decades to share our work online because it’s good for exposure. But now AI companies and, incredibly, governments are turning around and saying, ‘Well, you put that online for free …,” Newton-Rex said. “So now artists are just stopping making and sharing their work. A number of artists have contacted me to say this is what they’re doing.”
The album is scheduled to be distributed across music platforms, and any proceeds or donations from the project will be donated to the charity Help Musicians.
