Algorithm and Blues

"Billie Eilish, Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry are among 200 artists calling for a ban on 'predatory' AI in the music industry - amid fears technology could replace them"

Warning: the word Artist gets misused a lot in this one.

I'm not sure if Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry are jealous that a non-thinking computer program can regurgitate shit better than their hired 3 or 4 "songwriters" or maybe they realise that a computer program can generate better song ideas than they could dream up and they're just plain mad.

"In an open letter, several of the world's biggest stars have warned the tech 'will set in motion a race to the bottom' if left unchecked."  

Billie Eilish, Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry are already participating in the race to the bottom and they don't need that pesky AI getting in the way.  I'm picking Nicki Minaj since she seems to be the worst of the three mentioned.  Does she do anything other than look obnoxious?

"The use of AI to steal artists' voices, likeness, and sound is an 'assault on human creativity', they said, and would 'destroy the music ecosystem'."

Maybe I’m old fashioned but I can't tell one autotuned female vocalist from another.  The statement about there being an 'assault on human creativity' is ironic coming from someone like Katy Add-a-word-get-a-third Perry.  Being realistic, there's no "assault" or "predatory use".  I would say the assault on music by Katy Perry et all should be stopped

 

This picture has more talent than Nicki Minaj

"Issued by the Artists Rights Alliance (ARA), the letter calls for a ban on AI tools that undermine or replace human songwriters or their work."

"Fears over the use of AI have mounted over recent months after a song using AI to mimic the voices of Drake and The Weeknd went viral online."

Fear wasn't the word I used when I heard it.  I thought it was twice as shitty as just one of their songs on its own.  Two wrongs don't make a right.  And I'm going out on a limb, but I don't think it takes a lot of processing power for a computer to sound like two different autotuned computers.

"Signatories of the latest letter range from rock stars of the past, such as REM and Jon Bon Jovi, to pop stars of the moment, including Jess Glynne and Zayn Malik."  

They're not really selling their point with these examples.  I heard Stevie Wonder was on the list but I’m guessing they told him he was signing a birthday card.

"It warns that AI will 'infringe upon our rights and devalue the rights of human artists' if it is used irresponsibly."

Artists have different human rights than normal people?  I had no idea.

"Guy Chambers told The Guardian: 'I think we may get to a stage in the future where an album will need to have a badge saying "this is an all-human record.'"

I doubt it.  That’s kind of a dumb thing to say.

I'll be honest, I'm not too worried about AI generated music.  I don't do lame pop and I'm not conceited.  And I already compared AI lyrics with my own in this dandy: http://www.greggkoval.com/art-lyrics_ai_vs_me.html.  Normally I don't link to my website, but it's a new year.

To the Signatories: if you're worried about AI making a better song than you can come up with, then you'd better up your game.  And in the meantime, don't call yourself an artist.