Grimes leaves Columbia Records after two years
It has been confirmed that Canadian musician Grimes has left Columbia Records.
Billboard first reported the news, with Grimes’ manager Daouda Leonard confirming it. She first signed with the label in March 2021, and presently, no reason has been given for ending her contract. Signing to Columbia was her first major label deal after releasing five albums on independents, with her first two coming on Arbutus and the following three on 4AD.
During her time at Columbia, Grimes released two singles, ‘Player of Games’ and ‘Shinigami Eyes’. After leaving the label, how her future releases, and the long-awaited album Book 1, is yet to be addressed.
The news comes only days after Grimes permitted her voice’s use in AI-generated music – on the condition that she earns 50% of the royalties.
She wrote on Twitter on Monday: “I’ll split 50 per cent royalties on any successful AI generated song that uses my voice. Same deal as I would with any artist I collab with. Feel free to use my voice without penalty. I have no label and no legal bindings.”
Adding: “I think it’s cool to be fused [with] a machine and I like the idea of open sourcing all art and killing copyright … We’re making a program that should simulate my voice well but we could also upload stems and samples for ppl [people] to train their own.”
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