Will AI replace all musicians?

With AI covers of different artists flooding the internet, it is safe to say that AI has a substantial influence on the music industry. Many of those playlists you listen to on your Spotify are all algorithmic ones - a foundational basis of AI and you seem to enjoy the listening experience, don’t you? AI tools are becoming prevalent in every aspect of world development, and the glorious music industry stands no different. Should we be scared, or should we be relieved, how should we deal with this?

In this article, we will try to answer 3 VERY IMPORTANT questions:

1. How is AI impacting the music industry?
   
   
2. How is AI influencing music-making?
   
   
3. Can AI replace musicians?

How is AI impacting the music industry?

Along with musicians who are highly concerned about AI taking away their jobs in the future, there is another particular group that is wary of AI in the music industry - record labels. 

AI music is growing every day and it is also mixing well with the flow of buyable music in the market. If AI music overpowers the amount of music that comes from these record labels in the market, then the payouts these labels would get from different streaming platforms would see a definite effect. If there is a surge in the supply of tangerines in the market originally for wild limes, and oranges, you’d see that eventually, people would try tangerines and buy them as well, thus affecting the sales of limes and oranges. The same goes for AI music and music from independent musicians as well as record labels. AI music content has definitely increased the competition in the market mainly due to its excellent user-friendly applications that make it possible to create HUGE amounts of AI music content in a relatively short period. 

With AI, there’s also an increased opportunity for a personalized music listening experience. Companies such as Reactional Music, Life Score, and Minibeats use artificial intelligence to create dynamic and individualized music sessions. Instead of creating new music, these platforms utilize AI algorithms to remix current songs by reorganizing their constituent elements or “stems” in real time. For instance, if you’ve streamed a remix while playing a videogame and your next song is One Dance by Drake, then it is likely that AI will rearrange the track, remix it, and play it just the way you’d probably enjoy it. Some apps are developing this technology to enhance user listening experience because who doesn’t like a customizable music streaming session? 

Pssst…come here: The personalization feature sells extremely well and you cannot really escape from it. Spotify has banked on it for years with its Daily Mixes and Music For You category for every user of the app. AI has definitely made a striking impact with this and it looks like it will continue to. Think of it as you are listening to music while AI is listening to you. Creepy, but works. 

AI is likely going to grow and the wave of AI music content isn’t going to subside. Spotify’s CEO also asserted that there won’t be any removal or ban of AI-made music, unless, of course, it mimics the artist, thus trying to impersonate another musician. Until then, AI-made music is still allowed to be uploaded on Spotify. The boss also said that a certain level of AI tools usage in music making is also allowed, as long as it doesn’t come up as ‘fake’ Artist X or Y. The main criterion is to be wary of AI replication of famous vocals, but AI-helped beats, samples, and other elements of production are allowed. So this gives a fairly decent space for the existence of AI-made music in the music industry. 

How is AI influencing music-making?

The music-making process is not an easy and short one. It requires an intensive effort from the musician to understand what he or she wants to write about, pen the lyrics, knit a melody, the instrumental melodies, arrange the song, mixing, mastering, and so on. But with the advent of technology, AI tools are growing every day to ease the process entirely. 

Consider songwriting, for instance. You’d assume that songwriting is something only a human would be capable of doing because it requires something more than algorithms - creative intelligence. But today’s AI is creative as well. All it takes is a prompt. Take a look at ChatGPT here: 

There are other tools that can help musicians with songwriting. Suno AI is a music app that can make fully-fledged 2-minute songs only with a few prompts. Insanity. Although the vocals clearly sound like AI, the fact that it can still make a whole song with instrumentation, lyricism, and ambiance, all within a few seconds of entering your prompt and genre is crazy! For those struggling with some sort of creative block, this could help stir new ideas and inspire new music. 

AI tools for music production have also been quite the talk in the market. For instance, the Magenta Studio is a collection of music plugins created using Magenta’s free resources and models. Magenta, which uses cutting-edge AI techniques for music production, is accessible as both an independent program and an Ableton Live plugin. Most of these AI tools seem to have a growing popularity because it is made easily accessible to everyone. 

LANDR is an AI-driven platform that provides automated mastering services to music creators. It analyzes audio records using artificial intelligence algorithms and then applies mastering techniques to improve the quality of the sound. It can analyze audio records to detect trends and suggest improvements, which speeds up the production process altogether. The hassle that was prevalent before, isn’t necessarily the case now, with such user-friendly AI production tools. 

Oh, and it doesn’t end there! AI technologies allow for collaborative music composition beyond the limits of geography. Multiple artists may pitch in remotely to a project, and AI algorithms can help effortlessly incorporate their ideas. Endless is one such collaborative music platform that enables artists to jam together in real time, irrespective of their location. It uses AI techniques to sync and combine numerous inputs of the users, smoothly. 

They are tools that are supposed to help musicians work better and ease the entire process of making music, but it isn’t surprising that these tools can scare musicians themselves, because if they can do most of the work, then what will musicians do? You are right, in your fear of AI and what it is capable of. However, there’s likely going to be a working relationship between the two (AI and musicians) rather than a monopolization in the music industry in the future. 

Can AI replace musicians?

Hozier and many other artists have spoken against the usage of AI in the music industry calling AI quite insufficient in meeting the definition of art. And they aren’t wrong. 

Human beings are capable of mastering expression, imagination, intuition, and creativity because of the existence of freedom, and let’s not forget, just how our brains are - every mind works differently and thus makes each voice, and each song appear unique and irreplaceable. Our uniqueness can never be fully replicated now, can it?

Plus, do you really think AI will be able to pull shows the way Coldplay or Arctic Monkeys do? NO. Although AI can emulate performances in real time to some extent, the improvisation, creativity, and engagement that occur during concert performances are tricky to replicate artificially. Singers interact with listeners in various ways, which makes up the whole experience. 

One of the driving factors of music that helps musicians stand out the way they do is because of authenticity which partially stems from culture. Music has profound cultural and socioeconomic roots, reflecting community values, opinions, and experiences. Musicians use these circumstances to create music that resonates with people on an individual and societal level, which AI may fail to replicate authentically. 

AI can try and mimic a certain type of music with clear enough instructions and programming but can it ever actually be a musician? No. So, AI cannot replace musicians, but it can be of help if used aptly. Remember that it is humans who made AI in the first place, so really, you’re good. 

We at GreaseRelease, have a bunch of curators on our network who are looking for new & exciting music to push on their massive playlists. If you make music and want to reach a wider audience, check out our submission platform and get a chance to reach millions of listeners! Submit your tracks now!

 

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