AI-Generated Hit "Through My Soul" Sparks Industry Push for Human-Made Music Verification

A song crafted entirely by artificial intelligence, "Through My Soul," has surpassed 11 million views on YouTube and racked up millions of streams worldwide. The track, released under the name Enlly Blue—a virtual artist who has already issued six full‑length albums—has forced the music industry to confront how to distinguish human‑made music from machine‑generated content.

Enlly Blue debuted in 2025 when Vietnamese producer Thong Viet Thong (Nguyễn Viết Thông) harnessed AI for songwriting, vocal synthesis and production. The resulting catalog of soul and blues‑inspired tracks has been praised for its polish and emotional depth. "Through My Soul" entered Billboard’s Emerging Artist chart in October 2025 and quickly attracted a large audience. The track’s creator remains anonymous, and the persona behind the name is entirely generated by machine‑learning models.

Composer Adrian Younge, co‑founder of the Los Angeles‑based Jazz Is Dead label, first heard the song on a streaming platform. He told Fast Company that the track felt constructed rather than performed, noting that its influences seemed stitched together by a machine. Younge assembled his Midnight Hour band and vocalist Loren Oden to record a fully human rendition, which they performed live at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles. He later added the human version to his touring setlist, underscoring the difference between an AI‑generated composition and a live performance.

In response to the rising volume of AI‑generated music, Jazz Is Dead and ad agency TBWAChiatDay LA launched the "Played by Humans" initiative. The program offers a tool that scans audio files for AI fingerprints and issues a verifiable stamp for tracks that pass the test. The tool has already examined more than 1.6 million tracks. Deezer data cited in the initiative’s press release indicates that 44 % of music uploaded to streaming platforms daily is AI‑generated, and 97 % of listeners cannot distinguish between human and machine‑made songs.

Spotify has taken a dual approach to the issue. On April 30 2026, the company introduced a "Verified by Spotify" badge to help listeners identify authentic human artists. A month later, Spotify announced a partnership with Universal Music Group that allows Premium subscribers to create AI‑generated covers and remixes of existing songs for an additional fee. Spotify stated that artists whose work is used in these AI creations will receive royalties.

Sony has also developed technology that can detect original compositions embedded within AI‑generated music, a tool intended to identify potential plagiarism. The company’s approach focuses on the source material rather than the creation process, offering a different angle on authenticity.

These initiatives illustrate the industry’s attempt to balance the creative possibilities of AI with the need for transparency and fair compensation. While AI tools enable rapid production and remixing, the new verification systems aim to preserve the value of human artistry and provide listeners with clear information about the origins of the music they consume.

At present, the "Played by Humans" stamp is available to artists and labels who wish to certify their tracks, and Spotify’s badge is rolling out to verified profiles. The partnership with UMG is still in its early stages, and Sony’s plagiarism‑detection tool has yet to be released to the public. The industry will likely continue to refine these mechanisms as AI music production becomes more widespread.