Jermaine Dupri urges artists to unite over Spotify’s AI remix plans

The legendary producer wants musicians to have more control over which songs can be remixed by AI and how much creators are paid.

Jermaine Dupri wants musicians to have more control over how their music is used in artificial intelligence-generated remixes—and how much they get paid.

In a Nov.1 Instagram post, the legendary producer urged artists and music producers to negotiate collectively before Spotify introduces its planned AI remix feature. As AllHipHop reported, Dupri warned that the technology could shift the value of recorded music away from the people who created it.

“THEY GOTTA CUT US IN, OR CUT THIS SH-T OUT,” he wrote.

Spotify is developing a generative AI tool that would allow subscribers to create covers and remixes of existing songs. Rather than generating entirely new music from scratch, the feature would let fans rework recordings already available on the platform.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jermaine Dupri (@jermainedupri)

The service is reportedly being developed as a paid add-on for Spotify Premium subscribers.

Spotify has already signed licensing agreements with several music companies, including Universal Music Group in May, Merlin and Kobalt in August, and Believe in October.

Under the terms outlined in Spotify’s licensing agreement with Believe and TuneCore, participating artists would be able to decide whether to make their music available for AI remixes. Artists whose recordings are used would earn royalties when listeners stream fan-created versions, with each remix linking back to the original recording and artist.

Spotify has said participation will be voluntary and that creators will receive credit and payment for the feature.

While Spotify’s proposed system would allow artists to opt in or out, Dupri believes musicians should have greater control over the financial terms.

He wants artists to determine how much their recordings cost to use in AI-generated remixes and to decide which songs fans can remake.

The distinction is important: Spotify’s current approach would establish a licensing framework through agreements with music companies, while Dupri is advocating for artists to have a direct say in the value of their work.

The company has not publicly disclosed the royalty split for the proposed feature or described a system that would allow individual musicians to set their own fees.

The producer’s latest comments follow previous criticism of artificial intelligence in music.

In April 2024, Dupri criticized AI music generator Udio, arguing that musicians who spent years learning their craft should not have to follow rules established by technology companies.

His concerns also come as artists and music companies continue to debate how AI-generated music should be licensed, credited and monetized.

In June, SZA criticized AI music tools after discovering that 238 of her songs were listed in a database tracking AI training datasets. Pitchfork reported on the singer’s response, which came after the launch of a tool allowing artists to check whether their music appeared in AI training datasets.

Dupri also sued Sony over royalties in July. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s reporting on the lawsuit, the producer alleges the company owes him $18 million in unpaid royalties related to his work with So So Def artists and other performers.

Spotify is reportedly targeting a first-quarter 2027 launch for the AI remix feature.

Reuters reported on Oct. 30, citing the Financial Times, that the company is also considering a monthly add-on fee of $4 to $5.

Neither the launch timeline nor the pricing has been finalized.

For Dupri, however, the central issue is not simply whether Spotify introduces another paid feature. It is whether the artists whose recordings make that feature possible will have the power to determine how their work is used — and what it is worth.