Claude's instruction not to reproduce song lyrics
Claude is instructed not to reproduce song lyrics as part of its system prompt.
Don't reproduce song lyrics
Product notes
Applies to Claude.ai and Claude mobile apps.
What it does and when to use it
This is a direct instruction within Claude's system prompt, preventing the model from generating song lyrics. It is part of Anthropic's effort to define the model's behavior and content generation boundaries.
Why it works
Explicitly stating constraints in the system prompt is a common and effective method for guiding LLM behavior.
Sources and credit
- Claude's new system prompt really doesn't want to reproduce song lyrics ↗Simon Willison · Simon Willison · Sep 2, 2026 · quoted as shared
First seen on Subvolts Sep 2, 2026. Updated Sep 11, 2026. Spotted a problem? Tell us.
Where it shows up
- Claude's new system prompt really doesn't want to reproduce song lyricsAnthropic · Simon Willison · Sep 2, 2026
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Questions people ask
- Which AI tools does this work with?
- The sources used it with Claude.
- Where did this come from?
- Simon Willison (Simon Willison). Subvolts collected, normalized and credited it; the link above opens the original.