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The leaders in perhaps the largest known YouTube royalty scam in history, Jose “Chenel” Teran and Webster “Yenddi” Batista Fernandez, have been ordered to pay more than $3.3 million in restitution to their victims. The amount is just a fraction of the $23 million in total royalties the two fraudsters siphoned from mostly Latin music makers, including Don Omar, Julio Iglesias, Prince Royce and Anuel AA, from about 2016-2021.
In total, the duo’s company MediaMuv fraudulently claimed to be the rights holder of over 50,000 sound recording and composition copyrights. Proceeds from this scam were then used by Batista and Teran to fund their lavish lifestyles, including Lamborghinis, real estate, diamond-encrusted jewelry and other luxuries, until their indictment in November 2021. They were indicted on 30 counts of conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft.
The two will split the $3.3 million they are ordered to pay back to victims; one source explained that the money will be paid out slowly each month after their release from prison. Earlier this year, Teran was sentenced to nearly six years in prison and Batista was given four years.
The court is ordering Teran and Batista to pay just a small sampling of the many songwriters and artists who are owed royalties as a result of the scam. It stipulates that Regalias Digitales — a rights management firm that represents a number of the victims — is owed nearly $1.4 million, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) — which also represents many of the victims — is owed more than $1.2 million, Jose Luis Perales is owed $153,000, Los Caminantes is owed more than $149,000, Nancy Ramirez is owed more than $100,000, Vagon Chicano is owed $98,000, Grupo Mandingo is owed $67,000, Grupo Ladron is owed almost $56,000, SPARX is owed $49,000, Don Omar is owed nearly $21,000, El Ojo is owed $15,000, INAMU — Argentina’s National Institute of Music — is owed $11,000 for its catalog of artists, Pappo is owed almost $2,000 and La Renga is owed over $700.
The latest court document reveals that Reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny was also a victim of Teran and Batista’s false royalty claiming, which they conducted under the company name MediaMuv. The thieves stole $500 from the star, which they have been ordered to pay back.
Representatives for Regalias Digitales and the RIAA did not respond to Billboard’s requests for comment.
INAMU told Billboard it learned of Batista and Teran’s scam from its partners at AdRev, a digital rights management firm that is now part of Downtown Music. At the time, INAMU was working with AdRev to collect royalties on behalf of its catalog, and the organization subsequently got in touch with prosecutors. The Argentinian institute — which controls the rights to a recorded music catalog that includes Leon Giaco and Seru Giran — no longer works with AdRev.
AdRev was also a business partner of Teran and Batista. Over the course of the duo’s five-year scam, AdRev helped claim the duo’s royalties. To date, AdRev has not been accused of any wrongdoing by prosecutors, and Batista admitted to sending three falsified contracts with companies that “purportedly” managed artists to AdRev “for the purpose of deceiving [AdRev] into allowing [MediaMuv] to continue [its] fraudulent operation.” However, a previous Billboard investigation into the $23 million scam revealed that AdRev executives were warned of Teran and Batista’s suspicious ownership claims on many occasions but continued to work with MediaMuv despite those emails.
YouTube is launching an experimental feature Thursday (Nov. 16) that will create artificial intelligence-generated voices of well-known artists for use in clips on YouTube shorts. The initial selection of acts participating in the program includes Charlie Puth, John Legend, Sia, T-Pain, Demi Lovato, Troye Sivan, Charli XCX, Alec Benjamin and Papoose.
YouTube’s feature, called Dream Track, creates pieces of music — voice along with musical accompaniment — based on text prompts that are up to 30 seconds in length. For now, around 100 U.S.-based creators will have Dream Track access.
“At this initial phase, the experiment is designed to help explore how the technology could be used to create deeper connections between artists and creators, and ultimately, their fans,” according to a blog post from Lyor Cohen, global head of music, and Toni Reid, vp of emerging experiences and community.
The music industry has been wary of AI this year, but several prominent executives voiced their support for Dream Track. “In this dynamic and rapidly evolving market, artists gain most when together we engage with our technology partners to work towards an environment in which responsible AI can take root and grow,” Universal Music Group chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge said in a statement. “Only with active, constructive and deep engagement can we build a mutually successful future together.”
“YouTube is taking a collaborative approach with this Beta,” Robert Kyncl, CEO of Warner Music Group, said in a statement of his own. “These artists are being offered the choice to lean in, and we’re pleased to experiment and find out what the creators come up with.”
YouTube emphasized that Dream Track is an experiment. The artists involved are “excited to help us shape the future,” Cohen said in an interview. “Being part of this experiment allows them to do it.” That also means that, for now, some of the underlying details — how is the AI tech trained? how might this feature be monetized at scale? — remain fuzzy.
While the lawyers figure all that out, the artists involved in Dream Track sounded enthusiastic. Demi Lovato: “I am open minded and hopeful that this experiment with Google and YouTube will be a positive and enlightening experience.” John Legend: “I am happy to have a seat at the table, and I look forward to seeing what the creators dream up during this period.” Sia: “I can’t wait to hear what kinds of recipes all you creators out there come up with.”
While YouTube’s AI-generated voices are likely to get the most attention, the platform also announced the release of new AI music tools. These build on lessons learned from the “AI Music Incubator” the platform announced in August, according to Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google Deepmind. Through that program, “some of the world’s most famous musicians have given feedback on what they would like to see, and we’ve been inspired by that to build out the technology and the tools in certain ways so that it would be useful for them,” Hassabis explained in an interview.
He ticked off a handful of examples: An artist can hum something and AI-powered technology will create an instrumental based on the tune; a songwriter can pen two musical phrases on their own and rely on the tools to help craft a transition between them; a singer can come in with a fully fledged vocal melody and ask the tech to come up with musical accompaniment.
Finally, YouTube is rolling out another feature called SynthID, which will watermark any of the AI-generated audio it produces so it can be identified as such. Earlier this week, the platform announced that it would provide labels and others music rights holders the ability “to request the removal of AI-generated music content that mimics an artist’s unique singing or rapping voice.”
YouTube will introduce the ability for labels and others music rights holders “to request the removal of AI-generated music content that mimics an artist’s unique singing or rapping voice,” according to a blog post published on Tuesday (Nov. 14).
Access to the request system will initially be limited: “These removal requests will be available to labels or distributors who represent artists participating in YouTube’s early AI music experiments.” However, the blog, written by vice presidents of of product management Jennifer Flannery O’Connor and Emily Moxley, noted that YouTube will “continue to expand access to additional labels and distributors over the coming months.”
This marks the latest step by YouTube to try to assuage music industry fears about new AI-powered technologies — and also position itself as a leader in the space.
In August, YouTube published its “principles for partnering with the music industry on AI technology.” Chief among them: “it must include appropriate protections and unlock opportunities for music partners who decide to participate,” wrote CEO Neil Mohan.
YouTube also partnered with a slew of artists from Universal Music Group on an “AI music incubator.” “Artists must play a central role in helping to shape the future of this technology,” the Colombian star Juanes said in a statement at the time. “I’m looking forward to working with Google and YouTube… to assure that AI develops responsibly as a tool to empower artists.”
In September, at the annual Made on YouTube event, the company announced a new suite of AI-powered video and audio tools for creators. Creators can type in an idea for a backdrop, for example, and a new feature dubbed “Dream Screen” will generate it for them. Similarly, AI can assist creators in finding the right songs for their videos.
In addition to giving labels the ability to request the takedown of unauthorized imitations, YouTube promised on Tuesday to roll out enhanced labels so that viewers know they are interacting with content that “is synthetic”: “We’ll require creators to disclose when they’ve created altered or synthetic content that is realistic, including using AI tools.”
TikTok announced a similar feature in September. Of course, self disclosure has its limits — especially as it is already reported that many creators experiment with AI without admitting it.
According to YouTube, “creators who consistently choose not to disclose this information may be subject to content removal, suspension from the YouTube Partner Program, or other penalties.”
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YouTube is planning to roll out a new artificial intelligence tool that will allow creators to make videos using the voices of popular recording artists — but inking deals with record companies to launch the beta version is taking longer than expected, sources tell Billboard.
The new AI tool, which YouTube had hoped to debut at its Made On YouTube event in September, will in beta let a select pool of artists to give permission to a select group of creators to use their voices in videos on the platform. From there, the product could be released broadly to all users with the voices of artists who choose to opt in. YouTube is also looking at those artists to contribute input on that will help steer the company’s AI strategy beyond this, sources say.
The major labels, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group, are still negotiating licensing deals that would cover voice rights for the beta version of the tool, sources say; a wide launch would require separate agreements. As label leaders have made public statements about their commitments to embracing AI in recent months, with UMG CEO Lucian Grainge saying the technology could “amplify human imagination and enrich musical creativity in extraordinary new ways” and WMG CEO Robert Kyncl saying, “You have to embrace the technology, because it’s not like you can put technology in a bottle” — some music executives worry they’ve given up some of their leverage in these initial deals, given that they want to be seen as proponents of progress and not as holding up innovation. Label executives are especially conscious of projecting that image now, having shortsightedly resisted the shift from CDs to downloads two decades ago, which allowed Apple to unbundle the album and sent the music business into years of decline. Some executives say it’s also been challenging to find top artists to participate in the new YouTube tool, with even some of the most forward-thinking acts hesitant to put their voices in the hands of unknown creators who could use them to make statements or sing lyrics they might not like.
The labels, sources say, view the deal as potentially precedent-setting for future AI deals to come — as well as creating a “framework,” as one source put it, for YouTube’s future AI initiatives. The key issues in negotiations are how the AI model is trained and that artists should have the option to opt-in (or out); and how monetization works — are artists paid for the use of their music as an input into the AI model or for the output that’s created using the AI tool? While negotiations are taking time, label sources say YouTube is seen as an important, reliable early partner in this space, based on the platform’s work developing its Content ID system that identifies and monetizes copyrighted materials in user-generated videos.
Publishing, meanwhile, is even more complicated, given that even with a small sampling of artists to launch the tool at beta there could be hundreds of songwriters with credits across their catalogs — which would be sampled by the model. Because of this, a source suggests that YouTube may prefer paying a lump sum licensing fee rather that publishers will need to figure out how to divide among their writers.
As complicated as the deal terms may be, sources say music rights holders are acting in good faith to get a deal done. That’s because there’s a dominant belief this sort of technology is inevitable and if the music business doesn’t come to the table to create licensing deals now, they’ll get left behind. However, one source familiar with the negotiations says this attitude is also putting music companies at a disadvantage because there is less room to drive a hard bargain.
For months, AI-soundalike tools that synthesize vocals to sound like famous artists have been garnering attention and triggering debate. The issue hit the mainstream in April when an anonymous musician calling himself Ghostwriter released a song to streaming services with soundalike versions of Drake and The Weeknd on it that he said were created with artificial intelligence. The song was quickly taken down due to copyright infringement on the recording, not based on the voices’ likenesses, but in the aftermath a month later Billboard reported that the streaming services seemed amenable to requests from the major labels to remove recordings with AI-generated vocals created to sound like popular artists.
In August, YouTube announced a new initiative with UMG artists and producers it called an “AI Music Incubator” that would “explore, experiment and offer feedback on the AI-related musical tools and products,” according to a blog post by Grainge at the time. “Once these tools are launched, the hope is that more artists who want to participate will benefit from and enjoy this creative suite.” That partnership was separate from the licensing negotiations currently taking place and the beta product in development.
On Wednesday, UMG, Concord Music Group, ABKCO and other music publishers filed a lawsuit against AI platform Anthropic PBC for using copyrighted song lyrics to “train” its software. This marked the first major lawsuit in what is expected to be a key legal battle over the future of AI music, and as one source put it a signal that major labels will litigate with AI companies they see as bad players.
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On a trip to visit his mother in Israel last year, Lyor Cohen, YouTube’s global head of music, asked her one of those big life questions that’s impossible to answer with anything but a big answer.
“She has 16 grandchildren and four sons, she’s 92 years old, and she is moving around this world by herself and still enjoying her grandchildren, healthy,” said Cohen. “And I said to her, ‘You’re a very, very lucky person.’ And she said, ‘Yes, I know that.’ And I said, ‘So, why are you so lucky?’
Without hesitation, she replied, “The more you give, the more you receive.”
At 63, with three kids and an illustrious career in music, Cohen said it’s this giving spirit that inspired him to accept this year’s Spirit of Life award from City of Hope, one of the country’s leading cancer treatment and research centers.
“We’re in the giving business and so we’re grateful to be here and to have the privilege,” said Cohen. “It’s a privilege to do it, but you have to get out of your normal grind to recognize that.”
Dr. Joseph Alvarnas speaks to a group on a tour of City of Hope on April 17, 2023.
Ryan Hartford
The honor, bestowed by City of Hope’s music, film and entertainment industry (MFEI) fundraising group, is reserved for entertainment industry titans and has helped the MFEI group raise $150 million since launching in 1973. Now in its 50th year, recent recipients in music include Republic Records founders/chief executives Monte and Avery Lipman (2022), Epic Records chairperson/CEO Sylvia Rhone (2019) and Sony Music Publishing chairman/CEO Jon Platt (2018). As such, the events around them are regularly a who’s-who of industry heavyweights and well-wishers leading up to the gala dinner where the award is presented, which this year will take place Oct. 18 at the Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles.
In April, before the monthslong rollout of events including the All In For Hope Poker Tournament in May and the Music Trivia Bowl in July began, Cohen and seven of his staff members woke up early to drive over 100 miles from the Coachella Valley in rush hour traffic for a tour of the City of Hope campus in Duarte, Calif., just outside Los Angeles. It was the morning after the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival’s first weekend, where Cohen’s team oversaw what was likely the largest festival livestream event ever, broadcasting to more than 45 million people worldwide, according to the company. Many of them noted they hadn’t even had a cup of coffee yet.
Cohen, the tallest of the bunch, dressed in all black with a scarf around his neck, led the group, which also included Universal Music Publishing Group, North America president Evan Lamberg, entertainment lawyer Dina LaPolt, Culture Collective founder/CEO Jonathan Azu and Spirit Music Group chairman David Renzer — all of whom are on the City of Hope MFEI Board — as they followed City of Hope staff around the expansive 100-plus acre grounds.
There, they spoke with doctors and scientists to better understand the organization’s research efforts and care services. One of the key advantages City of Hope has in the field, several staff members explained, is that the proximity of scientists, treatment staff and manufacturing facilities, all of which are on-site, allows cross-collaboration that brings their research — seeking cures for cancer, HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening diseases — directly to patients without delay. Throughout, Cohen listened closely and expressed an intent to focus on how to address health disparities for Black people in the United States to create more equitable access to healthcare and establish greater trust in the system.
“I’ve made a living on Black music,” he said, “and what I’m particularly interested in is figuring out how the Black community could demystify getting early treatment and understanding about cancer and how they get the opportunity to help educate and eradicate cancer in these communities.”
Dr. Debbie Thurmond speaks on a tour of City of Hope on April 17, 2023.
Ryan Hartford
Cohen launched his career in the 1980s New York hip-hop scene as a road manager for Russell Simmons‘ Rush Productions before going on to manage the label. He later headed up Def Jam and then Warner Music Group before co-launching 300 Entertainment and, in 2016, joining YouTube. He had a hand in the careers of Public Enemy, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, De La Soul, Eric B. & Rakim, A Tribe Called Quest, Jay-Z, DMX, Ja Rule and Ludacris. He acknowledges this is an opportunity to support the people and culture that built his success.
Supporting economically disadvantaged and racially diverse communities facing barriers that limit their ability to find and sustain specialized care was the focus of City of Hope’s Closing the Care Gap event on Aug. 29 and has been at the center of the organization’s MFEI fundraising since 2018. According to City of Hope, only 20% of cancer patients in the United States are treated at National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers, which can sometimes mean the difference between life and death. It’s something the City of Hope treatment and research center is addressing through community partnerships, government policy, expansion and diversifying its own workforce.
“My big takeaway is that there are so many people that have committed a lifetime to helping others that are selfless, that are so enthusiastic about solving some of these big problems,” Cohen said after the tour. “I saw and met many of the doctors here that loved the fact that they were in an organization that’s biased to speed of getting things done, and breaking the code and making things happen. I felt like this is a joyful place to work and a joyful place to solve these problems.”
Jordan Schepps, Jonathan Azu, Ali Rivera, David Renzer, Waleed Diab, Dina LaPolt, Stephen Bryan, Vivien Lewit, Jake O’Leary, Lyor Cohen, Evan Lamberg, Zach Horowitz, and Loren Fishbein on a tour of City of Hope on April 17, 2023.
Ryan Hartford
