The recent experience of receiving partially AI-generated tracks for playlist consideration left me momentarily disoriented. I was bewildered that I was hearing a vocal that sounded like it belonged on the pop charts, submitted to me for one of my small playlists. It forced me to hold two opposing thoughts in my head at the same time - that this is the new way many will make their music, and it's not the way I intend to make mine.
Generative AI music creation platforms now allow users to enter prompts that will result in the creation of super-professional, polished sounding tracks. They can enter lyrics and descriptions of the mood and genre of the song. This can make listeners more active participants in what they listen to, and more appreciative of what goes into making a record. I've seen this technology also help experienced songwriters demo their music (or produce completed records) with fewer limitations on the vocal and instrumental abilities they have access to. It's also made for some interesting “what ifs” like if Van Halen existed in the Big Band era.
An Interactive Experience for All
We may see an upside in the mainstreaming of AI music creation. More people can participate and experiment, get a sense of what goes into creating a song. I've seen something like this happen before.
When video games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band broke into the mainstream, several players were inspired to pick up instruments and learn to play. I hope these AI platforms will inspire people to sing and play instruments as they have fun getting the tech to make the sounds for them. I certainly get that lowering the barrier to entry for participating in music gives the masses new ways to enjoy making music without a gatekeeper (a record company)'s rejection preventing them from making records.
Some artists who are skilled songwriters and producers like the wealth of inspiring new sounds they now have available. DarkHome, who submitted that initial AI collaboration for me to consider adding to a playlist, is a singer, but he wanted to write for a female voice. He managed to select an AI-generated female voice that brought his full artistic vision to life — to his great delight and my amazement.
And I'm quite excited for what this technology means for people who lack the physical ability to play an instrument. My friend, a drummer, is a stroke survivor who gets visits from a dozen musicians a week who play for him. What if this technology lets him create music again?
Why My Musical Intent is 100% Human
I sense a key ingredient in my music I'm not inclined to outsource to bots. It's the emotional connection between creator and audience - or between multiple creators working together. My last 4 albums were primarily fully solo; with few exceptions I personally performed all the parts - vocals, guitar, keyboard, bass and drums (the last instrument I learned, during the pandemic). Coming out of the pandemic I wanted a live band to perform live the essential layers I had in my head when I was recording. That band is Jason Didner and the Drive.
We've put on some shows and connected with each other and the audience in the process. We had a great deal of fun in practice and onstage. Leah will hit a fill that puts an exclamation point on a lyric line of mine. I turn around and we smile. These moments made me want to capture that same chemistry in my next round of recordings. My upcoming “The Asbury EP” tells the stories of bands in many cases. What better way to set the scene than to have the subtleties that come from combined human performances - the way Leah leans into a drum fill when I'm scraping my pick across the strings leading out of the song's breakdown section.
This process is underway and I'm truly happy we're doing it with more human connection at a time when it’s possible to make records with almost no human interaction.
Here I am with Leah on drums, recording “Not Young, Still Hungry.” There's a joy in this captured performance that can be convincingly approximated with tech, but never duplicated. Listen and watch for the way Leah and I seem to bring out the best in each other's musicality. Check out how some of Leah's fills start soft and build up to the crash into the next vocal line. She makes her drumming choices part of telling the story in the song.
Full Disclosure - My Music Does Benefit from AI
Now, AI does play a role in my musical side-hustle, but it's on the business and marketing end, as well as a specific technical role (mastering) at the end of the record production process. I don't mind having an algorithmic entity help me navigate the increasingly algorithmic social media platforms so real humans can actually see my posts and videos, and actually feel something from them.
I don't outsource the entire marketing job to AI. I ask ChatGPT questions about frequency and timing of posting. I create my marketing copy and ask ChatGPT to review it for me and make it more likely to reach more people through algorithmic processing. I seem to be getting gradual improvement in my material's reach.
Two Ethical Issues with AI Generated Music that Concern Me
I find two particular ethical issues troubling when it comes to AI-generated music.
First, the AI entity had to be trained in lyric writing, composition, voice and all the instruments, using actual, existing tracks. From my understanding, many major public AI creation platforms trained their models on enormous amounts of publicly available music. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of artists were not paid for their work being used in this way, …and aren’t currently traceable for compensation such as royalties or licensing fees. I hope the matter is handled legally, as it was when Napster enabled the unauthorized duplication of recorded music, which gave way to models where the songwriters and artists at least receive nominal compensation.
The second concern is a bit easier to address if people of good conscience stay vigilant. I believe music generated with AI needs to be clearly labeled as such, so listeners understand they're in for a different experience than if a human breathed into a microphone and poured out their emotions to make the music they're consuming.
This is why, when I received a very polished sounding track from an independent musician I asked questions and came up with a way to share it in the specific context that it's created with AI. I personally can enjoy and marvel at it for what it is, and rest assured that what I create is fundamentally different from it. Hearing perfect AI-generated vocals also makes me marvel more at the amazing human performances I've experienced so far in my lifetime. Music is truly miraculous.
▶️ Hear the playlist I curate, Man + Machine: Collabs with AI.
What are your thoughts about AI in the creation of music? How do you use AI in music or in general? What matters to you when you listen to music? Do you need a performance to be human to appreciate it?
✍️ Drop a comment below to share your opinion.