Paul McCartney Joins Silent Protest Album on UK AI Copyright

London – Paul McCartney, the legendary former Beatle, has contributed a silent track to a protest album challenging proposed changes to UK copyright laws that would allow artificial intelligence companies to use artists' work for training models without permission. The two-minute, 45-second "Bonus Track," recorded in an empty studio with only faint clicks and ambient noise, will appear on the vinyl edition of "Is This What We Want?" set for release on December 8.

The album, first issued digitally in February, features 12 tracks of silence captured in empty recording studios and performance spaces, symbolizing the potential silencing of musicians' livelihoods under the new regulations. More than 1,000 artists collaborated on the project, including composers Hans Zimmer and Damon Albarn, singers Kate Bush, Annie Lennox, and Jamiroquai, as well as The Clash, Tori Amos, Billy Ocean, and Yusuf, formerly known as Cat Stevens. The track titles collectively form the message: "The British Government Must Not Legalize Music Theft to Benefit AI Companies."

Organized by British composer Ed Newton-Rex, a former AI executive at Stability AI who resigned over ethical concerns about copyright...