Spotify wants to charge up to $5 a month for AI remixes of other people’s songs, FT reports: launch in early 2027
Spotify has already confirmed the tool for covers and remixes, while the Financial Times reported the timing and price. Only artists who opted in will take part.
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Spotify is preparing a paid tool powered by generative AI that will make covers and remixes of songs by artists who have opted in. According to the Financial Times, it will launch in early 2027 and cost about $4–5 a month on top of a Premium subscription.
The Financial Times reported the timing and price, as cited by The Next Web, and Spotify itself confirmed the tool in a statement on 20 October.
It may be unveiled around the Grammys in February. According to the FT, the date and price are still under discussion. These sources do not say whether the tool will be available in Ukraine.
What Spotify itself has confirmed
In May Spotify announced a deal with Universal, and in October with Believe and its TuneCore platform. The company explains that the tool is designed specifically for remixes and covers, not entirely new works. Every remix links back to the original track and artist, and royalties go to participants and the rights holders of the original. Participation is voluntary: an artist first opts in to being considered for AI programmes and then decides separately on this one.
According to the FT, as cited by The Next Web, plays of remixes will count toward the original song’s chart performance, and the service is working on including such versions in playlists. Examples of use include turning a folk track into a dance remix or hearing one artist perform another’s song.
Sony and Warner have not signed yet
Besides Universal and Believe, Merlin and Kobalt already have similar deals, The Next Web writes. Talks with Sony Music and Warner Music continue, and neither has announced an agreement. Spotify co-CEO Gustav Söderström, according to Music Business Worldwide, said on the second-quarter earnings call that the service could move ahead without all three majors.
The question of how much AI is acceptable in music has already reached the Grammys themselves this year: in September we reported how the Academy pulled Movin’ To The Sun from consideration, a hit by HUGEL.
We have also reported how Spotify will label AI-generated artists and what is already banned and allowed for AI in music.
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