AI-Generated Songs Detected In Golden Guitar Award Entries

The Country Music Association of Australia (CMAA) has drawn a firm line in the sand on artificial intelligence, announcing a major rule change for the 2026 Golden Guitar Awards: only fully human-created works will be eligible.

The move comes after several entries submitted for the 2026 awards were discovered to be entirely AI-generated, a red flag that prompted swift action from the CMAA Board. As of now, any song, performance or production created using AI whether in lyrics, melody, vocals, arrangements, or instrumentation will not be considered eligible.

Entrants must now confirm that their submission was created without the use of AI, with a signed acknowledgment required to validate eligibility.

CMAA Chairman Dobe Newton issued a strong statement defending the values behind the change:

"The use of AI to generate musical works is fundamentally at odds with the heritage and intent of our Awards which were created to celebrate the creativity of our songwriters, musicians, performers and producers.

While we welcome technology that supports and enhances creativity, we are resolute that it must never replace human artistry. For 54 years, the Golden Guitar Awards have honoured excellence in Australian country music, fuelled by authentic human creativity."

The announcement signals a clear stance from the CMAA at a time when the music industry worldwide is grappling with the rapid rise of AI tools. While the Board acknowledges that AI can serve as a useful creative aid, it also cites broader concerns from the economic impact (Australia is projected to lose over half a billion dollars in music revenue by 2028 due to AI) to issues around cultural and creative appropriation and devaluation of original work.

Beyond the Awards themselves, the CMAA is joining global calls for stronger protections: including regulations around AI training data, artist consent, and fair payment when work is used to train or power AI systems.

With this updated policy, the Golden Guitars reinforce their commitment to celebrating true, human-powered creativity in Australian country music.

From 2026, all submissions to the Golden Guitar Awards must confirm:

“I/We confirm this entry is human created and has not been generated by the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology. This includes but is not limited to the AI generation of lyrics, melodies, musical arrangements, band tracks and vocals.”