Studio Ghibli, OpenAI & The Fight For Creative Ownership

If AI can make human-like art, do we still need the artist?

Welcome to the first edition of The Brown & Black Social Club newsletter!

When we launched the Brown & Black podcast in February 2020, our mission was clear: to reframe race and pop culture through a Black and Latino lens. With DEI under attack and AI threatening creatives of color, that mission feels more urgent than ever. So we built this space, a bi-weekly cultural newsletter curated like a private “social club” for the multicultural creative class. It’s a room by us, for us. We’re glad you’re here.

Welcome to the club!
- Jack Rico & Mike Sargent

This week on 'Brown & Black,' we unpack OpenAI's 'Image Generator' and the Studio Ghibli AI dilemma, and discuss the cultural, economic, and existential implications AI poses to Black and Latino artists.

Episode Summary:
(3:36) – AI-generated Studio Ghibli? Is this digital cultural appropriation?

(6:05) – Japan’s copyright law loophole. Could U.S. creators be next?

(15:01) – What even is an artist in 2025? AI is blurring creators, remixers, and prompters.

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Retro Quote of the Week ❞

“Where is home now? I think it’s in the art. It’s in the movies.” — Oscar-winner Riz Ahmed on finding identity through creativity.