A '60s-flavored band blew up on Spotify. They're AI.
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Forbes
3 hours ago
- Forbes
Bruce Springsteen's Classic Reaches A New Billboard Chart Peak
Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A." jumps to No. 15 on Billboard's Rock Streaming Songs chart ... More following the Fourth of July, hitting a new all-time peak. Bruce Springsteen, circa 1984 (Photo by SGranitz/WireImage) Every year, around the Fourth of July, millions of Americans head to streaming platforms to listen to patriotic tunes — or at least songs they believe to be patriotic. Any famous cut featuring phrases like "Fourth of July" or words such as "America," "American," or "U.S.A." typically experience notable surges in consumption. One annual favorite is "Born in the U.S.A." by none other than Bruce Springsteen. Following another of America's birthdays, the track returns to multiple charts in the United States, and it even manages to hit a new all-time high on one list. "Born in the U.S.A." Hits a New High "Born in the U.S.A." resurfaces on three Billboard tallies, as it both sold and streamed well enough to appear on several different rankings. The Springsteen classic excitedly reappears on the Rock Streaming Songs chart at No. 15, earning just its fourth stay on the list of the most played rock tunes on platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and more. As it returns, the cut reaches a new all-time high. "Born in the U.S.A." Returns to Multiple Tallies "Born in the U.S.A." also lands on both the Rock Digital Song Sales and the Digital Song Sales charts. The former looks only at rock compositions, while the latter is genre-agnostic. Luminate reports that during the most recent tracking period, Springsteen's smash sold 1,500 copies — an increase of nearly 100% from the frame before. That gain was clearly fueled by the Fourth of July holiday. This week, "Born in the U.S.A." reenters the Rock Digital Song Sales tally at No. 4, just two spots below its peak position of No. 2. At the same time, it narrowly secures a spot on the Digital Song Sales list, landing at No. 25, the lowest space on that 25-title roster. Bruce Springsteen's Lowest-Peaking Hit While "Born in the U.S.A." may reach a new peak on the Rock Streaming Songs tally, it still stands as Springsteen's lowest-rising tune on the ranking. Alongside the E Street Band, the superstar has only sent three tracks to the tally. Of those, only "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" has cracked the top 10, where it stalled at No. 7 at the end of this past holiday season. "Sandpaper," Springsteen's collaboration with Zach Bryan, debuted and peaked at No. 14 last July. Bruce Springsteen's Greatest Hits Album Climbs The renewed attention focused on "Born in the U.S.A." — along with Springsteen's general popularity — also help his Greatest Hits compilation. The set returns to three rosters: the Top Rock Albums, Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts, and the Billboard 200. On those tallies, the set lands at Nos. 22, 27, and 107, respectively.
Cosmopolitan
a day ago
- Cosmopolitan
Listen to Lana Ferguson's Spotify Audiobook ‘Room For Two,' Narrated by Teddy Hamilton
It's pretty safe to say that it's the year of Lana Ferguson. The author has been giving us hit after hit recently and we honestly cannot get enough, especially as she crosses different tropes and genres. But her next big release is taking her and her readers somewhere completely unexpected as she partners up with Spotify Audiobooks for a brand new original novella that you're definitely going to want to listen to as soon as it drops. Room for Two, which is set to be released on August 19, 2025, brings Cade and Nora back together again after a year after their unexpected kiss together. As they get closer than ever, will they rediscover the spark that still cannot resist or will fate have other plans for them? Here's some info from our friends as Spotify Audiobooks: "I'm so thrilled to be sharing the cover of Room for Two, an audio-first novella (and my first novella, period), with the world on August 19th! This project is especially exciting; I love books in audio format because of the wide reach of accessibility it grants readers, how it takes reading and makes it easier to digest for the busy parent, the student in need of a distraction, the worker just looking to make their commute easier—people from all walks of life," Lana told Cosmopolitan. From Lana's hotter-than-life spice to the voices of Teddy Hamilton and Samantha Summers, Spotify is giving us the ultimate match made in audiobook heaven with a brand new second-chance romance. "Hearing my stories come to life in audio is always a thrill, and Spotify has given me the perfect cast to enrich this one; Samantha and Teddy are a dream team for me personally, and I am so happy that they're part of this project," she continued. "That moment when I get a first look of an audio project is always the best feeling, and the pieces I've been lucky enough to hear from these two have been phenomenal." Oh, and did we mention that you can already listen to it right now? Click play above to check out an exclusive excerpt and get your first look at Nora and Cade's love story! "The snippet we're sharing is the perfect encapsulation of Nora and Cade and their dating mix-up, and I hope it entices readers to give them a try! A big thanks to Cosmo for revealing the cover, and to Spotify for giving me this opportunity to share my story with readers in such a fun way!" Spotify listeners can already pre-save the audiobook so they can listen right as it drops! Fans who are subscribed to Spotify Premium can also use their 15 hours of monthly audiobook listening to check it out! Room for Two, by Lana Ferguson will be released on August 19, 2025 on Spotify and wherever you get your audiobooks.
Entrepreneur
2 days ago
- Entrepreneur
AI-Generated Band Velvet Sundown Has Millions of Streams
Hot new band Velvet Sundown has revealed itself to be "not quite human." If you are one of Velvet Sundown's adoring fans, seeing them perform in a city near you is going to be problematic. After releasing two albums, Floating On Echoes and Dust And Silence, that have earned the group 1.2 million listeners on Spotify, the folk-country music "band" revealed itself to be an AI creation — everything from their music to their images and backstory. In a post on X from Velvet Sundown's official account, the poster wrote, "The Velvet Sundown is a synthetic music project guided by human creative direction, and composed, voiced, and visualized with the support of artificial intelligence. This isn't a trick - it's a mirror. An ongoing artistic provocation designed to challenge the boundaries of authorship, identity, and the future of music itself in the age of AI." Related: Is AI Worth the Layoffs? Inside a CEO's Ethical Nightmare The post went on to state, "All characters, stories, music, voices and lyrics are original creations generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence tools employed as creative instruments. Any resemblance to actual places, events or persons - living or deceased - is purely coincidental and unintentional. Not quite human. Not quite machine." The Velvet Sundown is a synthetic music project guided by human creative direction, and composed, voiced, and visualized with the support of artificial intelligence. This isn't a trick - it's a mirror. An ongoing artistic provocation designed to challenge the boundaries of… — The Velvet Sundown (@tvs_music) July 5, 2025 As The Guardian points out, Spotify and other streaming services are under no legal obligation to identify AI-generated work. This raises concerns over consumer transparency and infringing on the works of the human bands that the AI was trained on, say experts the paper spoke to. Sophie Jones, the chief strategy officer of the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), told The Guardian that the organizaion was calling on law makers to "protect copyright and introduce new transparency obligations for AI companies so that music rights can be licensed and enforced, as well as calling for the clear labelling of content solely generated by AI." Related: 10 AI-Proof Jobs With Highest Pay, Fastest Growth Jones added, "The rise of AI-generated bands and music entering the market points to the fact that tech companies have been training AI models using creative works – largely without authorisation or payment to creators and rights-holders – in order to directly compete with human artistry." Velvet Sundown isn't the first AI-generated music act to gain traction. The 2023 track "Heart on My Sleeve" was created using AI-generated voices that mimicked The Weeknd and Drake, and Variety reports that the human behind the song submitted it for Grammy consideration.
