LANDR is injecting $1 million into its Fair Trade AI licensing scheme and raising the revenue share for participating musicians to 25% of net licensing income.
The advance fund offers upfront payments alongside the ongoing revenue split, which is now calculated based on an artist’s specific contribution to the training dataset. The first payouts are scheduled for later this month.
The initiative lets musicians voluntarily license their catalogs to companies building AI audio tools, ranging from generative music apps to voice synthesis platforms. The programme currently holds over 30,000 participating artists and hundreds of thousands of opted-in tracks, creating a large pool of professionally tagged data for developers.
This move comes as the legality of AI training data faces heavy scrutiny. While many models have been criticised for scraping the web without permission, LANDR states its programme relies on consent, transparency, and participation.
How this changes things for creators
Independent artist XO Jane says the scheme has already improved her workflow.
“It gives me more time to breathe, more time to be creative,” she says. “My wish is that more AI companies follow LANDR’s example: ask first, and pay the artists who say yes.”
Daniel Rowland, VP of Strategy & Partnerships at LANDR, notes that distribution cannot stop once a song hits streaming services.
“The future of music distribution is helping creators find new ways to monetise their work, wherever it creates value. Responsibly licensing music for AI is one of those channels, and we’ve built the infrastructure to support it at scale,” he says.
LANDR CEO Pascal Pilon argues the industry conversation has focused too much on what creators lose rather than alternative paths.
“We’re proving there’s another path, one built on consent and providing recurring revenue for artists. As technology continues to evolve, artists deserve the choice to participate and the opportunity to benefit from the value created,” he says.
Fair Trade AI is open to eligible LANDR Distribution users. Artists on other platforms can transfer their catalogs to LANDR via the Release Importer tool before opting in. The $1 million advance programme remains open for sign-ups until 20 July.
