In brief
Australia’s ARIA has barred all songs largely produced by artificial intelligence from its official charts, citing the need to preserve human artistry. The ruling follows the racist controversy over an AI remix of Madonna’s “Like A Prayer” that briefly topped the chart. Artists may still use AI tools for support but must declare involvement, and ARIA can retroactively re‑rank tracks and revoke awards if needed. The move aligns with global steps in Sweden, and future IFPI guidelines will extend to Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.
Songs created by AI banned from Australia's music charts
From August 2026, the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) announced that any release that is largely or wholly generated by artificial intelligence will no longer qualify for inclusion in its official charts. All new releases must be "substantially human‑made" in order to appear on the weekly Top 100.
The decision follows a controversy in which Australian DJ Josh Fawaz’s AI‑generated remix of Madonna’s "Like A Prayer" briefly reached No. 2 on the nationwide chart. After backlash, Fawaz added AI credits and the song was eventually barred from the charts. ARIA said the move is designed to "promote the human nature of artistry" and to protect Australian artists from competing against machine‑produced tracks in a market that "has never been more crowded."
Under the new rule, artists may still use AI tools for songwriting support, mastering or automated instrumentation, but the core song and the lead vocals must be written and performed by humans. Creators will be required to declare AI involvement when submitting a track, and ARIA reserves the right to retroactively re‑rank positions or request the return of an award if a track is found to be mostly AI‑generated.
ARIA’s directive aligns with global efforts—Sweden has already imposed a similar ban, and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) plans to roll out AI guidelines across Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pledged to give musicians control over AI training data and compensation, warning that loss of such control would amount to "theft."
