A new artist, Sienna Rose, has rapidly gained popularity with three songs charting on Spotify‘s viral list, including the hit “Into the Blue” which has surpassed five million streams. However, questions are surfacing about the artist’s very existence, as concerns grow that Rose’s music may be entirely AI-generated. Streaming service Deezer, utilizing new detection technology, has flagged a important portion of Rose’s discography as exhibiting characteristics consistent with artificial intelligence, prompting a closer examination of the artist’s online presence and prolific output.
A rising singer named Sienna Rose has landed three songs on Spotify’s viral chart, with her soulful ballad “Into the Blue” racking up over five million streams. But as her popularity surges, a growing question is emerging: does Sienna Rose even exist?
Streaming service Deezer, which has developed tools to detect AI-generated music, suggests a significant portion of Rose’s discography exhibits characteristics of artificial intelligence. A closer look reveals several red flags, including a lack of social media presence, no scheduled concerts, and a remarkably prolific output of new music.
More Prolific Than Prince
Rose’s Instagram account, briefly deactivated, offered little insight into the artist. Initially, it featured a series of nearly identical portraits, all bathed in a hazy, unreal lighting style often associated with AI-generated images. Now, the profile primarily consists of videos using her songs as background music, encouraging repeat listens to boost virality. One video shows Rose wearing a sports jersey with symbols instead of numbers.
Beyond Instagram, Rose has no presence on other social media platforms and has never performed live. Her release schedule is also astonishing. Between September and December, she uploaded at least 45 songs to streaming services – a pace that would challenge even the most industrious artists, like the legendary Prince.
The music itself blends jazz guitar lines and smooth vocals, reminiscent of artists like Norah Jones and Alicia Keys. However, many listeners have detected subtle clues suggesting AI involvement in the production.
In tracks like “Under the Rain” and “Breathe Again,” listeners have pointed to a consistent, almost imperceptible hiss throughout the songs – a common artifact of music generated using AI tools like Suno and Udio. These programs often begin with white noise, which is then refined until it resembles a finished track. Deezer uses these subtle imperfections to identify potential AI-generated music.
“When [the software] stacks all the layers and instruments on top of each other, errors occur,” explains Gabriel Meseguer-Brocal, a lead research scientist at Deezer. “They aren’t perceptible, we can’t hear them, but with a few mathematical operations, they are easily detected.” These errors, he says, act as a “unique fingerprint” revealing the software used to create the song.
Even casual listeners have noted inconsistencies, such as repetitive drum patterns, generic lyrics, and vocals that never deviate from the melody. This “generic” quality has led some to believe Sienna Rose isn’t a real person.
“I was like, ‘I love this,’ but something felt a little off… so I looked at her profile and was like, ‘This is AI,’” said music critic Elosi57 on TikTok. Another user wrote on X: “Started listening to Olivia Dean (amazing). Within two days Spotify recommended Sienna Rose, who has a similar but more generic sound. Took me a few songs to realize it’s AI.”
BBC Radio 4 presenter Gemma Cairney also noted that Rose’s photos “look a little unreal.” “When I listened to her music, it just felt like it was lacking a soul,” she added.
Despite the questions surrounding her identity, Sienna Rose has already garnered attention from major artists. Pop star Selena Gomez recently used Rose’s song “Where Your Warmth Begins” in an Instagram post about the Golden Globes, though the song was later removed following online speculation. The post, however, significantly boosted interest in the artist.
Many fans expressed disappointment upon learning Sienna Rose might not be real. “Please tell me she’s real,” one wrote on Threads. “I’m disappointed because I’ve heard a few of her songs and the music isn’t bad,” another agreed on Bluesky. “But someone said once you realize it, it starts to sound soulless, and I agree.”
A Pattern of Suspicious Activity
Of course, Sienna Rose could ultimately be a genuine singer choosing to remain private. She may be in a witness protection program, or caught in a contractual dispute with a record label and releasing music under a pseudonym. The rise of AI-generated music has created a climate of suspicion within the industry.
AI software is becoming increasingly sophisticated, allowing artificially created artists to compete with their human counterparts. This week, a hit song was removed from platforms in Sweden after journalists discovered the artist, Jacub, didn’t exist.
For some, the success of AI in the music industry would be a win. The cost of launching an artist like Sienna Rose is virtually nil, yet her music is earning an estimated £2,000 (approximately $2,500) in royalties per week. This contrasts sharply with the K-Pop industry, where labels invest an average of $1 million per member of a girl or boy group annually.
Several of Sienna Rose’s songs are credited to the independent label Broke, which has a track record of turning viral artists like bbno$ and Ndotz into chart stars. While they don’t list Sienna Rose on their website, they do feature the British dance group Haven. Haven faced controversy last year for creating a song using an AI-cloned voice of Jorja Smith.
The song “Run” by Broke was removed from streaming services after rights holders raised concerns about copyright infringement. It was later re-uploaded with a human vocalist and reached the UK Top 10 two weeks ago.
Broke has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding their relationship with Sienna Rose. BBC also contacted Nostalgic Records, which mentions Sienna Rose on its website, describing her as a London-based artist who is both a performer and a “heart storyteller.”
A Potential Industry-Wide Ban?
According to Deezer, around 34 percent of songs uploaded to the platform are now AI-generated, totaling approximately 50,000 songs per day. “Eighteen months ago, it was around five or six percent,” says Meseguer-Brocal, who calls the rapid increase “a bit shocking.”
Deezer hasn’t gone as far as Bandcamp, which this week announced a ban on all music generated by artificial intelligence.
Spotify also released a statement defending the presence of artists like Sienna Rose on its playlists. “It’s not always possible to clearly distinguish between music created with AI and music created by other means,” a spokesperson said. “Spotify does not create any proprietary music, and does not promote or penalize songs created using AI tools.”
However, resistance is growing elsewhere. Last year, artists including Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Damon Albarn, Pet Shop Boys, and Annie Lennox released a “silent album” to protest companies training their AI models on copyrighted works without permission.
At the 2024 Ivor Novello Awards, pop star Raye expressed her belief that fans will always prefer authentic music over algorithm-generated content. “There’s no reason to be scared. I’m not writing these songs to try and be the best songwriter. I’m writing them to try and tell my story. I’m trying to get rid of the weight that I carry, or trying to express myself and feel better,” she said.
British musician Kojey Radical, also at the event, said he wasn’t worried about AI, joking that he doesn’t even trust his washing machine to start at the right time. “Why is everyone trying to make me fear robots?” he laughed. “I ain’t scared of robots. I’m gonna win.”
