Grammys on the Hill takes aim at AI, honors Cornyn and Klubuchar

The Grammys on the Hill took aim at AI in the arts at Tuesday’s annual awards ceremony, honoring Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Amy Klobuchar for their work protecting music artists. (D-Minnesota) was also recognized.

The event was part of “The Biggest Week for Music in Washington,” with lawmakers singing hymns and applauding as the Recording Academy, a music industry lobby group, celebrated their legislative accomplishments. They told jokes and told stories.

Cornyn, who is pushing legislation to crack down on predatory ticket sales, said Congress needs to come together “to protect America’s vibrant live music scene.”

“What I love about music is that it transcends borders and is a universal language that connects people across borders,” Cornyn said.

“This bill takes power out of the hands of the bots and bad actors and puts it back in the hands of the people who make live shows special,” he said.

Klobuchar is one of the sponsors of the NO FAKES Act, which requires artists and record labels to provide consent before using AI to reproduce audio, and the right to be compensated for the resulting recordings. .

When accepting the award, Ms. Klobuchar playfully took a jab at her colleagues.

“Congress is very different from the Recording Academy, where one is full of major egos vying for the spotlight, and the other is the Recording Academy,” Klobuchar quipped.

“Artists have a right to their own voice and their own material,” she says. “I say to all my colleagues who are not in this room: Heed this call. Do not stand in doorways or block hallways.”

The two senators previously helped pass the Save Our Stages Act, which would provide $1.6 billion to entertainment venues struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding is the largest ever amount of support the government has provided to the industry.

However, the relationship between AI and art is rapidly evolving, which was echoed by all the artists in attendance.

Pop icon Sheryl Crow was praised for her work and urged action to put “guardrails” on AI.

The “All I Wanna Do” singer said the health of the arts is a bipartisan issue ahead of a chaotic election.

“We came to the table, all of us, whether you support Donald Trump, Joe Biden, RFK, or no one…We should support the program rather than oppress each other.” We need to create, and I don’t know if that’s the case, but what’s going on in our country right now,” Crowe told The Hill.

In his new song “Evolution,” which he performed at the event, Crowe sings about hearing his “hauntingly” familiar, spoofed voice on the radio. “She sounded so familiar that I thought she was joking,” she says.

Regarding concerns about AI copying, Crowe said, “It’s a real gift to have the sense of urgency on both sides of the aisle right now to protect something that truly represents all people: the arts.” Told.

Earlier in the day, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Arts (SAG-AFTRA), which represents all the artists who attended the Grammy Awards on the Hill, told the Senate Judiciary Intellectual Property Subcommittee that the NO FAKES Act requested that it be passed.

The bill is sponsored by Klobuchar and Sens. Chris Coons (D-Delaware), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), and Thom Tillis (R-Calif.).

SAG-AFTRA led a 148-day strike in Hollywood last year, with protections from AI becoming a major sticking point in negotiations with studios.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, national executive director of SAG-AFTRA, told the subcommittee that despite the union’s victories in these negotiations, creators “have no intention of using AI-generated digital replicas of themselves. They cannot control what others do with it, nor can they successfully claim compensation for their use.”

“These conservation efforts are co-sponsored by two Republican senators and two Democratic senators. There’s definitely a spirit of bipartisanship,” Crabtree-Ireland told The Hill.