An AI-generated song is charting in Germany.

Germany has a reputation for fake artists thanks to what we saw/heard with both Boney M and Milli Vanilli. But those projects were cloaked in secrecy and subterfuge. This track is completely different.

A producer named Butterbro used AI to create the music, vocals, and artwork for a song entitled “In Love with a Talahon.” It looks like he used Udio to create the song.

Butterbro said he made the song as a joke. The song is now in the German top 50, making it the first AI-generated song to hit the charts in the country–and maybe the first time in any major music country.

There’s also controversy behing the AI component. A “Talahon” is a term that arose on TikTok and describes young people–men, mostly–of a migrant background with a certain fashion sense who aren’t the nicest people when it comes to violence and treatment of women. Depending on who’s using it, it’s term of pride, derision, or a slur.

Is this the future? I guess we’ll see.