Africa's cultural contributions are largely absent from the training data used by generative AI music systems, leaving the continent at risk of becoming a passive consumer rather than a shaper of the technology. Music industry veteran Charles Goldstuck delivered this warning at a Wits University showcase concluding a six-month pilot project pairing African musicians with AI engineers. The event featured five prototype tools from teams across seven African countries, covering areas like endangered music preservation, digital archiving, and AI-powered children's storytelling platforms rooted in African genres. Goldstuck also highlighted the broader industry landscape, noting that AI music platforms like Suno and Udio are taking diverging approaches to copyright — fair use litigation vs. licensing deals — while attribution technology remains immature. Deezer reportedly receives over 60,000 AI-generated tracks daily, with 85% of their streams estimated to be fraudulent.
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