Ed Sheeran's Sapphire in Arijit Singh's voice: Recreated AI version goes viral; is it legal?
On June 6, Ed Sheeran released the video for Sapphire, a song he'd been teasing for a while. The three-minute video was shot in a guerrilla style during his visit to India and includes clips of him riding auto rickshaws and meeting fans.
What has excited Indian fans is the fact that the video, as well as the song, also features Arijit Singh. The Bollywood singer is seen driving Ed on his scooter around his hometown, Jiaganj, a small town in West Bengal's Murshidabad district.
Ed Sheeran called Arijit 'the final jigsaw piece' of the song. He teased that a full Punjabi version with Arijit is also coming soon.
Meanwhile, a recreated version of the song was released on YouTube. Apparently done with AI, this version of Sapphire is sung completely by Arijit Singh.
The video, uploaded by YouTube user Sing Rajveera on June 7, has gained more than 1 million views so far even though it's not actually a video. An AI-created photo of Arijit Singh and Ed Sheeran floats on the screen while the audio plays.
LiveMint has decided not to share/embed the AI version. Here's the original song:
Social media users had mixed reactions.
'I just realized how good Ed Sheeran is, they almost sound identical,' posted one user.
Another user wrote, 'Both versions are best but I like this one most ...I'm eagerly waiting for this version'
'Arjit the voice of India…' came from a fan while another wrote, 'No one can beat Arijit Singh…'
'This version is very special because it's Arijit Magical voice,' wrote another.
Comments dropped even from outside India, 'Arijit Singh's voice. Love from Bangladesh.'
Some users were not impressed with the AI use.
'Ai can't create the magic Arijit does,' came from one user.
Another user wrote, 'AI just stole our feelings slowly.'
'This is good but the original is masterpiece because AI doesn't create art with feeling and emotions. This is why AI will never beat human art,' wrote one user.
The YouTuber may not be aware that, in 2024, Arijit Singh filed a case against the use of AI to mimic his voice. And, he won the case.
The Bombay High Court, while calling it 'technological exploitation', gave interim relief to Singh in his copyright case against AI platforms for misusing his voice and image. According to the court, using someone's voice or face without permission breaks their personality rights.
It 'also undermines their ability to prevent commercial and deceptive uses of their identity," the court said in its ruling.
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