Suno AI CEO Slammed for Saying Most Don't Enjoy Making Music
Suno CEO Mikey Shulman faces backlash after claiming most people don't enjoy making music, amid a major copyright lawsuit from record labels over AI.
Suno CEO's dismissal of music-making as joyless ignites backlash amid copyright lawsuit
Mikey Shulman, Suno's co-founder and CEO, triggered widespread criticism after telling The Twenty Minute VC podcast that "the majority of people don't enjoy the majority of the time they spend making music" and "it's not really enjoyable to make music now." The remarks, aimed at justifying Suno's text-to-song AI platform, landed poorly with producers and artists who viewed them as dismissive of craft's inherent value. Backlash erupted on X on January 13, with critics linking the gaffe to broader concerns about AI diluting human artistry.
Shulman backpedaled the same day, admitting he "expressed his thoughts badly" and clarifying that music remains "my life, not just my job." The damage lingered: his comments surfaced as Suno faces an RIAA-coordinated lawsuit from major labels alleging unauthorized training on copyrighted recordings, with damages potentially reaching $150,000 per infringed work. Shulman has acknowledged Suno trained on protected material, calling it "stock standard" for AI firms and framing litigation as industry resistance to democratization.
For DJs and producers, the controversy exposes a core tension: tools promising instant creation risk flooding markets with low-effort outputs while copyright battles remain unresolved.
Why the gaffe matters now: AI music's tension between accessibility and craft respect
Shulman's misstep lands amid a broader reckoning over whether AI music tools genuinely democratize production or simply lower barriers to flooding markets with disposable output. Suno's 12 million users tilt heavily toward casual creators—those seeking instant gratification over the grind of learning synthesis, arrangement, or mixing. For working producers, that demographic shift raises existential questions: if platforms can generate passable tracks from text prompts, what happens to the economic floor for human-made loops, samples, and beats?
The timing amplifies the stakes. Suno's ongoing RIAA lawsuit, alleging training on unlicensed recordings, frames the controversy less as a single CEO's gaffe and more as a symptom of an industry trying to justify scraping artists' work while dismissing their labor as tedious. Shulman himself has admitted Suno trained on copyrighted material, calling it "stock standard" for AI firms—a defense that courts may reject, with damages potentially reaching $150,000 per infringed work.
For DJs and producers navigating an already saturated ecosystem, the subtext is clear: accessibility without respect for craft risks devaluing the skills that separate professionals from algorithms.
