Golden Guitars to review stance on AI after 2026 awards
Could AI be used more in Golden Guitar nominations in the future? (ABC News)
In short:
The Country Music Association of Australia (CMAA) will review its stance on AI use in the Golden Guitar Awards.
Generative AI was banned for the 2026 awards after five AI-generated songs were submitted.
What's next?
The CMAA will seek opinions and views across the music industry.
It might not be able to strum a banjo, but could a computer ever win a coveted Golden Guitar?
That is the question facing the Country Music Association of Australia after AI-generated songs were submitted for the 2026 Golden Guitar Awards.
At the nominations announcement in Sydney on Tuesday, CMAA chair Dobe Newton said more than 280 judges made a quick decision to ban entries without human involvement, after five fully-generative (AI generated) tracks were submitted.
"They were not associated with any known artist or performer, and in the words of one of the judges, they were 'crap',"Mr Newton said.
Mr Newton said in the years to come, it will be a challenge to determine how much AI technology is accepted in the awards.
With those concerns front of mind, Mr Newton said he is canvassing opinions within the industry "far and wide".
Dobe Newton says AI tracks are easily spotted due to their poor quality. (sourced: Tamworth Country Music Festival Youtube)
“We will come up with an industry-wide solution for how we judge and allow generative AI creations to be introduced into our awards," he said.
"[The Golden Guitars] are merit-based awards to recognise and celebrate the creativity of songwriters, performers, recording artists, and videographers.”
Humans need only apply
Other major music awards, including the ARIA Awards and the American Grammy Awards, have already established rules on the use of generative AI.
The Grammy Awards rule stipulates that works featuring some AI are eligible, provided it has meaningful and significant human authorship.
ARIA Awards are only open to Australian Recording Industry Association members, with strict entry criteria.
ARIA also took a stance against the introduction of a Text Data Mining exception being introduced into Australian copyright law, which would have allowed AI companies free rein to train models on local creative works.
Amy and the Sniffers on stage at this year's ARIA Awards, which are only open to ARIA members. (AAP: Sitthixay Ditthavong)
Newton said the CMAA is considering other organisations' approaches to AI.
"What we have to do is make sure that we safeguard the creative efforts of the people who are out there making wonderful music," he said.
‘Cheating the system’
Darwin-based country artist Sara Storer has won 22 Golden Guitar Awards across her almost 30-year career and was nominated for another four in 2026.
Sara Storer says AI takes away from the rewarding creative process. (supplied)
She told ABC New England Breakfast the idea of AI being used more in music was concerning.
"As a songwriter, coming up with your lines … it could be one or two words that you have to wait on for days, and once you get it, it’s gold," Ms Storer said.
"There is something really wonderful about creating that little piece of work that is 100 per cent yours."
"To use AI, I think you just feel like you're cheating the system, and then you put your name to it — you're sort of telling a big old porky."
John Williamson says AI music will never have soul. (supplied)
Country music legend John Williamson told ABC Newcastle Mornings that AI artists had no place in music.
"They're stealing. I've had people send me songs that use my music as an AI," he said.
"There's no soul and there never will be.
"I'm a storyteller. I like to make people laugh and cry, and make them feel proud as Aussies. You are not going to get that out of an AI."
A recent survey by the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) found significant concern about AI models stealing material and flooding the industry with content that takes opportunities away from real artists.
Two of the top Christian songs on iTunes are by AI artist "Solomon Ray".
Does AI have creativity?
Professor of Media and Communication at University of Newcastle Phillip McIntyre believes the use of AI in music creation is subjective.
Whether or not the use of AI tarnishes music awards depends on individual views on creativity, he said.
"Is it the coder of the AI that is the creative agent in the whole process, or is it the technology itself?" he asked.
"I suspect it’s the former rather than the later."
Phillip McIntyre believes AI should only be used as a tool and not fully replace humans. (supplied)
Professor McIntyre said he believed AI was acceptable in music production, similar to drum machines and synthetisers, but there were limits.
"When [AI] starts to supplant and take over so that there is very little human input, I think that becomes problematic," he said.
"People have always attempted to achieve perfection, and it's the mistakes we make along the way that lead to interesting work and new genres. The amalgamation of country music and blues music led to rock'n'roll."
Dobe Newton believes their will always be interest in music made by humans. (sourced: Tamworth Country Music Festival Youtube)
CMAA Chair Dobe Newton agreed that AI had some place in the creative process of music, but there will always be a desire for music created by a real artist.
"Generative AI is just the latest in a long line of developments," he said.
"I remember in the 80s when the first AI tool, the drum machine, was introduced to the music industry.
"People said, ‘That's the end of drummers,’ [but] that hasn't happened.
"There will always be people who will be staunchly opposed to listening to and consuming music that is totally AI generated, [and] there will be others who don't care. It's basically in the ear of the beholder."