AI country hit ‘Walk My Walk’ built on Blanco Brown’s sound sparks questions of attribution, ethics

An AI-generated country song titled “Walk My Walk” recently reached No. 1 on Billboard’s country digital song sales chart, credited to a fictional artist called Breaking Rust—a digitally created white avatar that didn’t exist two months ago. The surprising success has sparked controversy in the music industry, particularly because the song’s vocal style, phrasing, and melodic structure strongly resemble those of Grammy-nominated Black country artist Blanco Brown.

Brown, known for his 2019 country rap hit “The Git Up,” was completely unaware of the song’s existence until his phone began flooding with messages from concerned friends. “My phone just kept blowing up,” Brown recalled. “Somebody said: ‘Man, somebody done typed your name in the AI and made a white version of you. They just used the Blanco, not the Brown.'”

This incident highlights the rapidly evolving impact of generative AI on the music industry. The technology now allows anyone to create songs by typing prompts into a chat window, often utilizing AI models trained on real artists’ voices and styles without their knowledge or consent.

The credits for “Walk My Walk” list Aubierre Rivaldo Taylor as one of the creators, with streaming platforms identifying him as both songwriter and producer. Taylor has also been credited on platforms as the songwriter and producer behind Defbeatsai, a group of explicit AI-generated country artists that gained viral attention last year.

Further investigation reveals connections to Abraham Abushmais, a former collaborator of Brown’s whom the artist once affectionately called “Abe Einstein” for his studio expertise. Abushmais co-wrote songs on Brown’s 2019 album and is listed as the developer of Echo, an AI-powered music generator promoted on Defbeats.ai’s Instagram page.

Brown said he wasn’t informed about their involvement in the AI hit, and his former collaborator has become unreachable. “Abe’s number changed,” Brown said. “We used to talk. I ain’t heard from him in a year or two.”

For Brown, the creation of a white AI avatar singing with what he describes as his vocal style was particularly troubling. “It’s a white AI man with a Black voice,” Brown said. “And he’s singing like a Negro spiritual.”

Rather than simply expressing outrage, Brown took action. He recorded his own cover of “Walk My Walk” and released it last week. He’s also preparing a reworked version with new lyrics and arrangement set to release soon.

Brown’s management stated that his response directly challenges the legal, ethical, and policy vacuum surrounding AI-generated music. Through his personal experience, Brown aims to force the industry and lawmakers to address questions of artistic ownership and the rights of human creators in an era where technology outpaces regulatory frameworks.

“If someone is going to sing like me, it should be me,” he asserted.

Music industry experts view the success of “Walk My Walk” as a watershed moment. “We are entering a very strange and unprecedented period of both creation and industry,” said Josh Antonuccio, director of the Ohio University Music Industry Summit. “AI has essentially democratized the act of music creation itself.”

This democratization has occurred with minimal regulation. Major record labels have sued AI song generators like Suno and Udio, accusing them of training their models on copyrighted recordings without permission. However, some labels are now pivoting from litigation to partnership. Universal Music Group recently settled copyright infringement lawsuits with Udio and established a new licensing agreement. Warner Music Group followed suit, partnering with Suno in what they termed a “first-of-its-kind” agreement to develop licensed AI music that both compensates and protects artists.

For Brown, this situation carries both legal and cultural significance. As a Black artist who has blended gospel, hip-hop, pop, and traditional country elements, he’s navigated a challenging path in country music. Despite Grammy nominations and recognition from the Recording Academy, he hasn’t received consistent support from country radio. Meanwhile, an AI song built on his vocal identity but paired with a white avatar immediately topped the charts.

“He created something with my tone and gave it a white face,” Brown said, suggesting this reflects a familiar pattern in Nashville of innovation from Black artists being reattributed. “(Race) is an understatement in Nashville.”

Music educators emphasize that AI tools, while capable of approximating sound, cannot capture its authentic source. “There are things a real artist conveys that the digital part never will,” said Shelton “Shelly” Berg, dean of the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. “They occupy fundamentally different spaces.”

Despite the controversy, Brown maintains he’s not anti-AI or even angry with his former collaborator. He appreciates that his sound inspired others but recognizes what the situation reveals about the industry. “I go through this every day with real people who steal and borrow from what I do,” Brown said. “So I don’t care if it’s a robot or a human. They’re not giving me credit anyway.”

In this rapidly evolving landscape, Brown remains confident that human artistry will ultimately prevail over technological imitation. “Real artists are always going to prevail,” he concluded. “Purpose lives where greed can’t.”