Wednesday Aug 12
ENTERTAINMENTOther

Suno Signs Its Second Major Label

12AUG
DEAL SIGNEDSTILL SUING

The AI music fight just split down the middle. Suno signed BMG, home to the Rolling Stones and Bruno Mars. Universal and Sony are still suing instead.

BMG represents over 3 million songs, from Mick Jagger to Pitbull. Suno will pay to license those recordings, plus its own past training use.

Every artist must opt in before their music trains or appears in Suno. Warner Music signed first, in November 2025, settling its past copyright claims. Universal and Sony are still suing Suno, with no deal close in sight.

BMG itself is suing Anthropic over Claude allegedly training on its lyrics. One AI company gets a deal; another still faces the same lawsuit.

full brief & sources

⚡ Why this matters

  • AI music licensing flipped from lawsuits to signed deals at major labels within a year.
  • BMG suing Anthropic over Claude the same year it settles with Suno shows the split isn't about AI itself, it's about payment.
  • Two of the five biggest rights holders still won't sign, so the fight isn't over.

🔍 What happened

  • Aug 12: Suno signed a licensing deal with BMG, its second major label partner.
  • BMG represents over 3 million songs, including artists like the Rolling Stones and Bruno Mars.
  • Suno pays BMG an undisclosed sum, covering future use and past training on its catalog.
  • Artists and songwriters must opt in before their music can train or appear in Suno.
  • Warner Music Group signed the first such deal in November 2025.
  • Universal Music Group and Sony Music remain in active copyright litigation against Suno.

💬 Smart takes

  • Mikey Shulman, Suno co-founder and CEO: 'Building that future responsibly means working directly with the people who make music.'
  • Celine Joshua, BMG EVP global marketing and streaming: 'Choice is the guiding principle. This agreement establishes strong protections and clear economics.'
  • Skeptic: BMG sued Anthropic in March over unlicensed lyrics in Claude, so this deal reads as leverage, not a change of heart on unauthorized training.

🧭 Where this goes

  1. LikelySony Music signs a similar deal within the next two quarters.
  2. PossibleUniversal holds out longer, using its lawsuit as leverage for better terms.
  3. Likelymore AI labs sign licensing deals rather than fight training lawsuits in court.
  4. Wild CardBMG's Anthropic lawsuit gets folded into a licensing deal like this one.

🥄 The Spoon Take

A year ago every label was suing Suno. Now half of them are cutting deals instead. The pattern: labels aren't against AI music, they're against getting paid nothing for it. Once the check clears, the lawsuit becomes a negotiating tool, not a principle.

🤔 Pushback

BMG suing Anthropic for the same behavior it just monetized with Suno makes this look like pricing power, not principle.

·BMG - Official alliance announcement·Forbes - Suno-BMG licensing deal·Variety - Suno preps label-backed models