In the unfettered chaos of 2026, it actually feels right that one of the first contenders for Song of the Summer is a Smiths pastiche released by a member of Shoreline Mafia that, according to widespread speculation, may actually be the product of generative AI. On June 5, rapper Fenix Flexin released โRubberz,โ a collaboration with 808 Mafia producer Purps on the Beat that quickly went viral for its unique mix of street rap lyrics and British new wave production. Atop Oberheim DMX-style drum tones, Fenix adopts an English-ish accent and sings in a wounded tenor about โSwipinโ cards and stackinโ chipsโ and โPlastic smiles on Sunset Boulevard.โ
โRubberzโ is a deeply weird song, but it quickly caught on with fansโand just as quickly became the subject of scrutiny around potential AI use. With generative AI improving at freakish speeds, many people are on high alert for established artists using the technology to cut creative corners. (Kanye West earned criticism for his use of vocal deepfaking on the scrapped album Cuck, and Timbaland has faced backlash for his partnership with the popular AI music app Suno).
Taylor Gang producer/artist 6AM has been perhaps the loudest voice pushing back against โRubberzโ specifically, as well as the potential danger of widespread AI in mainstream music. Heโs used his Instagram stories as a platform to dissect the song and highlight the slippery slope it could lead to if the track is truly passing off generative AI as human creativity.
โThis opens up the floodgates for fucking anybody with no talent to just put out a song and say, โYeah, this is me right here. This is my art,โโ he told POW. โThis is Pandoraโs box.โ
All the musicians POW spoke to believe Fenix Flexin used AI on โRubberz,โ though each had different opinions on the level of generative technology at play.
