Colin 
BBC Introducing has always been one of the few national platforms still dedicated to giving unsigned musicians a voice. Its presenters champion new sounds, spotlight regional talent, and offer artists their first radio play. Many now-established names started there. It remains a vital part of the UK music ecosystem. Which is why this latest mistake feels like a betrayal of everything it stands for.
Last week, BBC Introducing West Midlands aired an interview with their current Artist of the Month, Papi Lamour, who openly stated that all his music was created using AI prompts. The segment aired at around 1 hour 14 minutes into the show and can is still on BBC Sounds at the time of writing. According to a post by Mollyxo on TikTok, the artist confirmed the use of AI-generated material without any human composition or performance.
This was not a live segment. It was pre-recorded. That means producers, editors, and presenters all had the opportunity to review the content before broadcast. Someone listened, signed off, and decided to put it out anyway. In doing so, BBC Introducing handed its most prominent regional platform slot to an artificial act, taking valuable airtime away from genuine independent musicians.
A platform built for people, not programs
We like BBC Introducing. TuneFountain has praised it before for keeping grassroots music alive here. It has consistently supported local creativity and innovation when few other outlets cared. But this decision directly undermines its mission. The whole premise of BBC Introducing is to showcase human artists. Those hours on air are meant to nurture careers, not promote algorithms.
Every second of airtime counts, especially now. BBC Introducing teams have faced deep cutbacks over the past few years. Local programmes were merged or dropped entirely. Many talented producers lost their jobs. The few remaining shows have limited space to feature new acts, and competition for those slots is fierce. To see one of them handed to a system spitting out AI-generated songs instead of a musician working nights and weekends to record their debut is indefensible.
Even setting the AI issue aside, the music itself was unworthy of Artist of the Month recognition. The single was anodyne and cliched, a generic blend of production tropes that sounded like a shallow imitation of modern pop trends. There was no hook, no emotional pull, and nothing to distinguish it from the thousands of other forgettable tracks uploaded daily. On quality alone, it should never have reached BBC Introducing’s top feature slot.
The BBC has every right to explore technology and its effects on culture. That is part of its remit. But there is a line between examining AI as a topic and rewarding it with a title that should belong to a real artist. Calling a prompt-based entity “Artist of the Month” is an insult to the very people BBC Introducing claims to champion.
Pre-recorded, preventable, and unacceptable
Because the segment was pre-recorded, there is no excuse. If this had been a live slip-up, the BBC might reasonably plead ignorance. But this was an edited broadcast. They had total control. Someone heard that the “artist” admitted to using AI to make everything and still approved it for air. That means either the production team did not care, or they failed to understand what they were platforming.
In either case, the outcome is the same. A show built to give emerging artists a break gave its top slot to a computer model trained on other people’s work. Independent musicians are being priced out of studios, ignored by labels, and struggling to make streaming income. BBC Introducing was supposed to be their refuge. Instead, it gave them one more reason to lose faith in the system.
AI has no rent to pay. It has no stories to tell. It does not dream of performing at Glastonbury or feel nervous before a gig. Giving that kind of act a title intended for humans sends the worst possible message: that effort no longer matters, and authenticity is optional.
BBC accountability
The BBC must address how this happened. The decision to air the segment was not an accident. Editorial standards exist to protect audiences from misinformation and uphold fairness. In this case, fairness means protecting the limited opportunities still available to real, working musicians.
If BBC Introducing wants to feature discussions about AI music, it should do so transparently. Invite experts. Host debates. Ask artists how they feel about synthetic competition. But never reward AI-generated material with honours designed for human creators.
This moment should serve as a wake-up call. Platforms like Introducing are too precious to be compromised by a failure of oversight. Every minute of broadcast time counts when so many artists are fighting to be heard. That is why this must never happen again.
If you’re angry about this then go support real musicians such as Mollyxo who featured during the same BBC Introducing show. Thank you to Bldsugr for highlighting this story to us.
We have approached the BBC Press Office for comment on this story and will update if and when we get a response.