Would you listen to a band that doesn’t exist?

A question that half a million Spotify users have unknowingly answered with yes. Since Spotify doesn’t mark music that was generated with apps like Suno as AI on its platform, users are not properly informed about the source of the music they are hearing. Which makes it easier to manipulate the listener’s behaviour.

In just two weeks, a psychedelic rock band, The Velvet Sundown, released two albums, Floating on Echoes and Dust and Silence, and soared to 555K monthly listeners despite that they never played a live show, nor did they speak to the press or have a fan base. Industry insiders and music platforms like Musically quickly noticed something was off. The vocals? Slightly uncanny. The album art? Most likely generated by a text-to-image AI. Their suspected tool of choice: Suno, a rising AI platform designed to instantly create full songs from a simple prompt.

Attempts by journalists to trace the band’s origin led to dead ends. No trace of photos, interviews, or social media content that proves human creators. It’s the ghost band era, and The Velvet Sundown is its poster child.

Spotify’s complicity

The band launched two complete albums seemingly in a month. Spotify’s algorithm picked up on their tracks and began pushing them through “Recommended For You” lists, catapulting their reach. No PR campaign, no human artist behind a mic. Just smooth production, catchy hooks, and a hint of suspicion. There is even a rumour circulating that some percentage of these monthly users might be bots, which could bring the creators of The Velvet Sundown into a legal dilemma.

Why does this concern us?

This is changing the way we consume music, and not always for the better. With flooding platforms like Spotify and Deezer with AI, genuine musicians will suffer from what is called artist crowding. It means that with AI-generated songs being uploaded at unprecedented rates, and sometimes maybe even thousands per day. As a result, streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube are becoming oversaturated with content. This creates a major visibility crisis for human artists, particularly those without massive marketing budgets or label backing.

Transparency is also a concern. Right now, there is no regulation that forces music streaming services to label music as AI and Spotify is suing this loophole to pay less royalties and leaving ethical questions unanswered. With no artist credits, no tours, and no accountability, many are asking: Does creativity still matter if music becomes mass-produced by machines?

A final Note

At Forte³, we believe in sustainable, human-centred music ecosystems. AI can be a valuable tool, but it is not a total replacement. Artists deserve fair visibility, clear credit, and ethical platforms that don’t prioritise machines over musicians. We do that by promoting genuine musicians in our magazine and selling an eco-friendly and socially responsible music subscription box: ForteBox

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