The California reggae band Stick Figure has spent two decades building a steady career, releasing eight albums and touring relentlessly. But lead vocalist Scott Woodruff has never experienced a viral moment quite like the one surrounding their six-year-old track, “Angels Above Me.”
Recently, the song skyrocketed to number one on iTunes sales charts in six countries, including the United Kingdom, Canada, and Austria. For a moment, it seemed like a career-defining breakthrough. Fans were flooding TikTok with enthusiastic posts, and the song’s momentum was undeniable.
However, the excitement quickly turned to frustration. Woodruff discovered that the viral explosion wasn’t driven by the original recording, but by unauthorized, AI-generated remixes. These robotic versions, created with a single click, are dominating the streams while the band receives zero royalties.
The “Whack-a-Mole” Battle for Copyright
Stick Figure is currently fighting a modern music industry nightmare: their biggest hit is being monetized by strangers using artificial intelligence.
One unauthorized remix amassed over 1.8 million plays on YouTube in just five days. According to Woodruff, four different AI-generated versions are currently going viral. While the band’s label, Ineffable Records, has sent takedown notices to major platforms and individual uploaders, the process is slow and inefficient.
- Spotify has removed all requested tracks.
- YouTube took down the most viral video.
- Other platforms still host the infringing content.
Adam Gross, president of Ineffable Records, describes the effort as a “game of whack-a-mole.” When the label contacted one uploader, the individual claimed the track was a “cover” and offered to share royalties—a proposition the band rejected. These are not creative covers; they are algorithmic derivatives that fail to credit or compensate the original artists.
The Rise of “AI Slop” in Music
Stick Figure’s struggle is a microcosm of a much larger industry crisis. The volume of AI-generated music is exploding, overwhelming streaming platforms and complicating copyright enforcement.
Data from the French streaming service Deezer highlights the scale of the problem:
* In 2025, 18% of songs detected daily were AI-generated.
* By 2026, that figure jumped to 44%, equating to over 2 million tracks per month.
* Deezer estimates that 85% of these tracks are fraudulent “slop” designed specifically to siphon royalties.
This surge is fueled by tools that allow users to churn out ersatz versions of popular songs at scale. While unauthorized remixes are not new—dating back to the mashup era of the early 2000s and the famous Grey Album controversy involving the Beatles and Jay-Z—the stakes have changed.
“In the past, rogue remixers were often seen as anti-establishment creatives. Now, widespread backlash to generative AI has recast the dynamics. AI has been a whole new can of worms.”
— Chris Dalla Riva, Data Analyst and Musician
Dalla Riva points to Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit” as a precursor. When sped-up, unauthorized remixes of Lacy’s song went viral on TikTok, his label convinced him to release an official version to capitalize on the trend. Stick Figure, however, lacks that leverage against bots that generate infinite variations instantly.
Why Platforms Are Struggling to Keep Up
Streaming services are attempting to combat the flood of AI content, but the sheer volume of uploads makes proactive policing difficult.
- Spotify is testing an “artist protection feature” to prevent AI music from being attributed to real artists. In September alone, the platform removed over 75 million “spammy tracks.”
- Deezer takes a transparent approach, labeling AI songs, but admits that without evidence of stream manipulation, they pay royalties to whoever uploaded the track.
Manuel Moussallam, Deezer’s research director, explains the logistical hurdle: “There is no centralized database of what legitimate releases are.” With artists frequently changing labels and distributors, platforms struggle to distinguish between legitimate independent releases and fraudulent AI spam.
The Path Forward
For artists like Scott Woodruff, the current system is broken. He advocates for distribution companies to implement automated audio scanning that flags copyrighted audio and lyrics before tracks go live. Until technology and policy catch up, artists remain vulnerable to having their work exploited by algorithms.
Despite the digital chaos, Stick Figure is continuing to create. Woodruff is currently working on the band’s ninth album, choosing to focus on authentic artistry rather than the battle for digital ownership.
The rise of AI-generated music highlights a critical gap in copyright infrastructure, leaving artists to fight for credit and compensation in an increasingly automated landscape.
