HAVEN.’s breakout track “I Run” looked destined for a Hot 100 debut after weeks of momentum, but the song abruptly vanished from Spotify and was withheld from Billboard’s charts altogether. The disappearance came amid speculation that the track relied heavily on AI, sparking a copyright battle just as the song was skyrocketing.
A new Billboard investigation reveals that creators Harrison Walker and Jacob Donaghue acknowledge using “AI-assisted vocal processing” on the original recording. They insist the vocals were based solely on Walker’s voice (not modeled after any other artist, as some believed) and that HAVEN. is “real and human.”
Billboard says the song was barred from charting due to “dozens” of active copyright takedown notices, which triggered its policy allowing titles to be withheld during ongoing disputes. That left “I Run” effectively frozen at the moment it was poised to go mainstream, but a new version of the song featuring vocalist Kaitlin Aragon is now on the way.
The episode lands in the middle of a broader industry reckoning over AI’s role in music creation, distribution, and authorship — tensions that have flared as more artists question how far the tech should be allowed to go..
