Using AI for music industry — is it okay?
It feels like there is an AI solution for almost anything in our lives nowadays. From automatization of repetitive tasks within work to generative AI like ChatGPT, AI is infiltrating our daily lives in places that we haven’t even thought of. Using AI in creative aspects such as to make paintings, photos, videos, and music seem to be common across social media. I came across a post on Instagram that showed famous songs “sung” by different singers/rappers by using AI software (e.g., the theme for SpongeBob SquarePants sung by Drake) and was completely shocked with how realistic and on point it was. I find this exact use case, to create something that didn’t exist before artistically via AI, very intriguing but also concerning.
The AI behind this technology analyzes vast amounts of musical data and therefore, can use this knowledge to mimic or recreate anything desired. This can be a great source of inspiration for artists who want to explore different genres/samples or get out of a creative rut. Because the AI here is simply a tool, how its used is dependent on the creator and the prompt they give so there are endless opportunities. In this way, one can argue that the creator is still the person behind the new composition since they are giving the direction such as a genre reference, an instrumentation preference or certain musical elements for AI to generate the desired output. When used like this, I fully understand and appreciate the value of AI for music industry and artists. One could also argue that this is not true creativity and that eventually would make the artists “lazy” if they rely too heavily on an AI software to create music. While I can see how this could happen, I believe the human touch and the brainstorming/ideation process of how to use this tool is still meaningful and is valuable because it all starts with the idea of where to get the inspiration. However, I also believe this recreating becomes problematic when certain artists and their works are used without proper acknowledgement or consent.
Take the example of Drake AI-singing the SpongeBob SquarePants theme song. There are multiple problems with this, especially ethically and business-wise. Ethically, is the artist okay with such a reproduction of their very own voice in that context? Maybe Drake hates SpongeBob SquarePants and is completely furious with his voice being able to even be used in such a context. Reproducing an artist’s voice or style without their consent or awareness can potentially damage their artistic integrity. With how good the AI is getting in mimicking the artists voice, it is hard to separate what is real from what is not real. Not only does this dilute the value of that artist’s work by making it widely available to anyone without permission from the artist, but also is highly open to misuse and abuse. Business-wise, this is also a violation of intellectual property and creates an ownership issue. Although the artist themselves haven’t worked on the AI-generated piece or involved in the creation of it, it is their voice and style being used. This requires not only proper acknowledgement but also an approval from the original artist because of the right the artist has on their work. Just like how YouTube could remove a video which doesn’t have a copyrighted or cited song used in the video, the new songs generated should require a similar intellectual property rights owned by the artist. While the seriousness of this specific example can be discussed, it is a case in point to demonstrate the need to find a balance between enabling creativity by using AI in music composition and protecting artists’ rights with regards to the ethics and legality. Yes, it is entertaining to hear hypothetical parodies but this shouldn’t turn into a business of its own without the original creators being onboard or protected.
As AI penetrates our lives more and more, similar concerns on topics we haven’t even thought about will continue to arise. At the intersection of AI and music industry, these tools should equip up and coming as well as established artists to think outside the box and explore their imagination and creative force further. Both the creators of these tools and the music industry itself are responsible for allowing artists to draw inspiration without falling into undesired pitfalls and ethical dilemmas that hurt the artistic expression. As long as lines between what is okay and not okay are defined and the value of the original creators work is acknowledged, the sky is the limit for what can be created.
