The hottest neo-soul artist on Spotify doesn’t exist

Sienna Rose is an AI-generated R&B project with millions of listeners, zero identity, and a casual co-sign from Selena Gomez—because apparently that’s all it takes now.

By Casey Epstein-Gross  |  January 13, 2026 | 2:45pm
Music News spotify
The hottest neo-soul artist on Spotify doesn’t exist

There’s a whole other internet out there, folks. Prior to today, I had never heard of up-and-coming neo-soul act Sienna Rose before, but based on social media today, it seems a lot of people had—she’s got three songs in the Spotify top 50 and boasts a rapidly rising listener count that’s already well into the millions. She is also, importantly, not real. That’s right, the so-called “anonymous” R&B phenom with no social media presence, digital footprint, or discernible personal traits is AI generated. Who would’ve thunk?

Well, not Selena Gomez, it seems. Two days ago, the “Come & Get It” singer posted a photo dump on Instagram after the Golden Globes and soundtracked it to “Where Your Warmth Begins,” a Sienna Rose “original,” computer-created vocals crooning soulfully through the screen (rather ironic, considering Sienna Rose is inherently soulless, being a series of numbers and all). The post has 1.3 million likes. You would hope that someone with an actual career in music would be slightly more careful about platforming the AI facsimiles endangering the artform, but hey, what do I know? 

The proliferation of AI art is becoming increasingly stomach-turning, all the more so because of how willing most listeners are to consume it without question. Sienna Rose is about as obvious an AI artist can get: the generic R&B name and album covers, the vaguely new-age-y song titles, the hollow production and repetitive songcraft, even the ChatGPT-ass artist description (“With a voice that is tender, expressive, and deeply emotional, she creates songs that feel both timeless and intimate—like quiet confessions wrapped in melody”). And yet, over two million people—ranging from randos praising her music online to, apparently, musicians themselves—count themselves fans (with some later expressing shock after realizing they’ve been had). Turns out you don’t even need a soul to make soul music, I guess.

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