The Velvet Sundown was just the first major band to make it into the mainstream headlines. After running up a huge number of listens on Spotify with no particularly compelling evidence that the band had ever played a live show or even been seen by another human being, the puppet master behind the AI-generated band finally admitted they were nothing more than AI, but not after a viciously self-pitying social media campaign decrying themselves as victims of the world.“Themselves.” Or itself. Or whatever it was, as at least one person was behind the reins of the blandly derivative, AI-generated songs. We haven’t seen the last of AI-generated music masquerading as human-created, but anything that adds a dash of truth and makes it harder for AI slop to bamboozle us, the better.(opens in a new window)Spotify(opens in a new window)Available at SpotifyBuy Now(opens in a new window)the precedentLast year was a debacle in terms of bad publicity surrounding AI slop hiding as human-generated music. Spotify, sensing an existential threat to its brand name and reputation, responded fairly quickly. By September 2025 it’d removed 75 million AI-generated tracks in the prior year, and that it’d begin introducing new ways to authenticate and separate AI-generated music from human-created music on its platform. Spotify doesn’t seem to be banishing AI music entirely, just making it clearer to listeners what is AI and what isn’t.“We look for an identifiable artist presence both on and off-platform, like concert dates, merch, and linked social accounts on their artist profile,” reads Spotify’s April 30, 2026 announcement of Verified by Spotify’s rollout, which will occur over the next few weeks. Lack of these aspects were one of the major clues to astute sleuths online that something was off with The Velvet Sundown.“We focus our review on artist profiles that listeners are actively and intentionally seeking out over a sustained period of time, not just those experiencing one-time spikes in engagement…” the announcement continues. “We’ll pair these standards with human review and judgment to identify real artists behaving in good-faith, not just filtering out bad actors, giving you a more reliable signal of the authentic artistry behind the music.”From the sound of it, Verified by Spotify won’t be a default that puts the burden on listeners to do the detective work of figuring out which bands are possibly AI and then lobbying Spotify to take action, which is a welcome turn from how 2025 played out.Contest Alert: VICE Playlist ProjectIf you’re making music, VICE just launched the Playlist Project, a global song contest built around real life moments. Instead of genres, you’ll submit songs to a specific category that fits your track. Entries are open now, with cash prizes and VICE social & editorial features on the line. TAP HERE TO LEARN MORE AND ENTERThe post Spotify’s New Verify Badge Will Call Out AI-Generated Slop appeared first on VICE.