Paul McCartney has joined a music industry protest against artificial intelligence companies using artists' work without permission, releasing a nearly silent track as part of a new album. The former Beatle's contribution, titled (bonus track), features only faint hiss and occasional clatters, symbolising the potential silencing of original music if AI is allowed to exploit creative works unchecked.
The track appears on the B-side of a vinyl LP called Is This What We Want?, filled with other silent recordings from artists including Sam Fender, Kate Bush, Hans Zimmer and the Pet Shop Boys. The album's track listing spells out: “The British government must not legalise music theft to benefit AI companies.”
McCartney, 83, has been a vocal critic of government plans to allow AI firms to train models on copyrighted material unless creators actively opt out. He warned that AI could “take over” and harm young composers and writers, saying: “If AI wipes that out, that would be a very sad thing indeed.”
The protest comes as the UK government consults on copyright exceptions for “text and data mining”, balancing the £125bn creative industries against £30bn in AI investments, mostly in datacentres. Campaigners argue ministers are favouring US tech giants, with composer Ed Newton-Rex stating: “I am very concerned the government is paying more attention to US tech companies’ interests rather than British creatives’ interests.”
Legislation is not expected before 2026, while the government has signed deals with OpenAI, Google and Anthropic to boost AI adoption. Cross-bench peer Beeban Kidron said: “The government is trying to play both sides and convincing neither.”
