Weeks after Capitol Records announced the “signing” of FN Meka – a virtual “robot rapper” launched by creative start-up Factory New – the Universal-owned label has shared a statement confirming it has cut ties with the rapper.

Virtual rapper FN Meka made headlines when it was signed. The company received backlash, the criticisms coming in linking the signing to blackface in the 21st century.

“We offer our deepest apologies to the Black community for our insensitivity in signing this project without asking enough questions about equity and the creative process behind it,” Capitol Music Group said in a statement on Tuesday.

FN Meka is a product of Factory New, a “media company focused solely on virtual and digital talent,” co-founder Anthony Martini said in a statement.

Just hours before Capitol dropped FN Meka, the activist non-profit group Industry Blackout released an open letter demanding that the label “terminate” the partnership.

“While we applaud innovation in tech that connects listeners, this digital effigy is a careless abomination and disrespectful to real people who face real consequences in real life. Gunna, a Black artist who featured on a song with FN Meka, is currently incarcerated for rapping the same type of lyrics this robot mimics. The difference is, your artificial rapper will not be subject to federal charges for such.”