For the First Time, I'm SCARED of A.I. as a Music Producer

Alice Yalcin Efe - Mercurial Tones Academy
13 Apr 202411:46

TLDRA professional music producer expresses his fear of AI as a music producer for the first time. Despite his success, he is concerned about the implications of AI on the music industry, as it could potentially replace human producers with no royalties or arguments, just on-demand music. The producer demonstrates the capabilities of AI music tools, showing how they can create tracks in various genres based on simple prompts. He acknowledges the current limitations, such as phasing in the high end, but predicts these will be fixed soon, making it impossible to distinguish between AI and human-produced music. The summary ends with the producer's contemplation on the future of music, pondering whether AI will kill the artist's soul or provide new tools for even greater creativity, and inviting viewers to share their thoughts on how AI might change music forever.

Takeaways

  • 🎵 The speaker, a professional music producer, expresses fear towards AI's potential impact on the music industry.
  • 🏆 Despite being successful with a number one spot on Beatport and millions of streams on Spotify, AI's capabilities in music production are concerning.
  • ⚖️ The music industry's financial challenges are highlighted, with producers often relying on touring and additional services for income.
  • 🤝 The industry is described as being dominated by corporations that may seek to reduce costs by replacing human producers with AI.
  • 📈 AI music tools have improved significantly, causing a shift from previous reassurances that they were not up to par.
  • 🤖 All the music samples provided in the video were created using AI, which is a revelation to the audience.
  • 🎼 The process of creating music with AI is outlined, drawing parallels to how chat GPT works, where you describe the desired song and the AI generates it.
  • 📊 The speaker discusses the current limitations of AI in music production, such as phase issues in the high end, but anticipates these will be resolved soon.
  • 🔥 There is a sense of urgency as the speaker expected these changes to occur later, around 2026-2027, not as imminent as they currently seem.
  • 🌐 The implications of AI on-demand music are explored, raising questions about the future of artistry and the soul of music.
  • 🔍 The speaker is left contemplating the future, expressing a mix of fear, curiosity, and excitement about how AI will change music production forever.
  • 📚 The audience is encouraged to share their thoughts on the impact of AI in music, inviting a dialogue on the potential long-term effects.

Q & A

  • What is the main concern expressed by the music producer in the video?

    -The music producer expresses fear and concern about the potential impact of AI on their career and the music industry as a whole, as AI has become capable of producing music that is difficult to distinguish from human-made tracks.

  • What is the percentage of revenue that most music producers are left with after all the cuts from labels, distributors, and taxes?

    -After all the cuts from labels and distributors, which take 45.6% and 16.7% respectively, and after taxes (20.8%), music producers are left with around 16.8% of the revenue.

  • How does the music producer describe the process of creating music with AI?

    -The music producer describes the process as similar to using chat GPT, where one needs to describe the song they want to create, including genre, lyrics, and style. The AI then generates multiple alternatives of the track.

  • What is the name of one of the AI music tools mentioned in the video?

    -One of the AI music tools mentioned in the video is called 'Soo'.

  • What is the music producer's opinion on the quality of AI-generated music?

    -The music producer acknowledges that the quality of AI-generated music has significantly improved and is now at a level where it is difficult to distinguish from music produced by humans.

  • How does the music producer feel about the future of music production with AI?

    -The music producer is both excited and scared about the future of music production with AI. They are concerned about the implications for their career and the music industry, but also curious to see how AI will change music forever.

  • What is the potential impact of AI on the music industry according to the music producer?

    -The music producer suggests that AI could potentially replace human producers, leading to music on demand without the need for human input, which could result in no royalties or arguments, just music as requested.

  • How many AI-generated music samples were provided in the video?

    -There were four AI-generated music samples provided in the video.

  • What is the music producer's view on the current state of AI music tools?

    -The music producer views the current state of AI music tools as a game-changer, noting that they have improved to the point where their output is competitive with human-produced music.

  • What are some of the genres that the AI music tools were able to generate tracks for, as mentioned in the video?

    -The AI music tools were able to generate tracks for genres such as deep house, rock, trap, metal, and techno.

  • How does the music producer perceive the role of AI in the music industry moving forward?

    -The music producer perceives AI as a reality that is not going away and will likely become as good as, or even better than, human producers in some aspects. They are unsure whether AI will kill the artist's soul or provide new tools for greater creativity.

  • What is the music producer's call to action for the viewers at the end of the video?

    -The music producer invites viewers to share their thoughts in the comments, asking if they are thrilled or terrified about AI's impact on music and how they see AI changing music forever.

Outlines

00:00

🎵 The Impact of AI on Music Production

The speaker, a professional music producer, expresses concern about the rise of AI in music production. Despite their success, including chart-topping tracks and performances at major festivals, they are worried about the implications of AI-generated music. The video aims to be transparent and honest about the situation, starting with a test for viewers to identify AI-made tracks. The speaker discusses the challenges of being a musician, including the financial struggles due to low payouts from streaming services and the pressure from corporations to reduce costs. They highlight the potential for AI to disrupt the industry by replacing human producers with AI, which could lead to on-demand music creation without the need for human input or royalties. The speaker invites viewers to guess which of the previewed tracks were AI-generated and provides context for the discussion.

05:06

🤖 AI's Growing Role in Music Creation

The speaker demonstrates the capabilities of AI music tools, showing how they can create tracks across various genres by simply describing the desired song characteristics. They use an AI platform called 'Soo' to generate a deep house track with female vocals, illustrating the process of inputting song parameters and receiving AI-generated alternatives. The speaker acknowledges the current limitations, such as phasing in the high-end frequencies, but predicts these issues will be resolved soon. They also explore other genres like rock, trap, and metal, using different AI platforms like 'udio' to create tracks with varying vocal styles. The speaker emphasizes the potential of AI to revolutionize music creation and their apprehension about the future of the industry.

10:12

🌐 The Future of Music in the Age of AI

The speaker reflects on the rapid advancement of AI in music production, expressing fear for their career and the essence of music itself. They had anticipated these changes to occur further in the future, giving them time to adapt. However, the reality of AI's current capabilities is both exciting and terrifying. The speaker contemplates the concept of music on demand, where AI can generate a perfect track based on user input for genre, lyrics, and mood. They question whether AI will enhance creativity or diminish the artist's soul. The speaker acknowledges the new reality of AI in music and invites viewers to share their thoughts on how AI might change music forever.

Mindmap

Keywords

AI Music Producer

An AI music producer refers to artificial intelligence systems that can create music autonomously. In the video, the speaker expresses fear of AI music producers because they are capable of generating high-quality music tracks that are indistinguishable from those made by human producers. This technology has the potential to disrupt the traditional music production industry.

Music Streaming

Music streaming refers to the act of listening to music online, where songs are played in real-time over the internet, rather than being downloaded to a device. The video discusses how streaming services pay a fraction of a cent per stream, which contributes to the financial challenges faced by music producers.

Royalties

Royalties are payments made to the creators of music or other works for each copy sold or for each time a work is used. In the context of the video, the speaker is concerned that AI-produced music could eliminate the need for human producers, thereby removing the need for royalty payments.

Music Industry

The music industry consists of the businesses involved in the production and sale of music. The video highlights the competitive nature of the industry and the potential for AI to replace human producers, which could have significant implications for the industry's structure.

AI Music Tools

AI music tools are software applications that use artificial intelligence to assist in the creation of music. The video demonstrates the capabilities of these tools, showing how they can generate music across various genres based on user prompts, which was previously a task performed by human musicians and producers.

Music Production

Music production is the process of creating music, which involves recording, editing, and mixing songs. The video script discusses the challenges and financial constraints that music producers face, and how AI could potentially change this process by automating it.

Ghost Producing

Ghost producing is when a music producer creates a track for an artist or another producer who is officially credited for the work. In the video, ghost producing is mentioned as one of the ways that producers supplement their income, which could be threatened by AI music production.

Music Revenue

Music revenue refers to the income generated from the sale or streaming of music. The video outlines the various cuts taken from music revenue, such as those by labels, distributors, and taxes, leaving a small percentage for the producers themselves.

On-Demand Music

On-demand music is a concept where listeners can access specific music tracks or genres instantly, typically through digital platforms. The video suggests that AI could enable a future where music is created and delivered on-demand, tailored to individual listener preferences.

Music Genres

Music genres are categories that describe different styles of music. The video script includes examples of AI-generated music across various genres such as deep house, rock, trap, metal, and pop, demonstrating the versatility of AI music tools.

Artistic Soul

The term 'artistic soul' refers to the essence of creativity and emotion that artists imbue in their work. The video raises the question of whether AI-generated music could potentially diminish the importance of the artist's soul in music creation, or if it could simply provide new tools for artists to express themselves.

Highlights

A professional music producer expresses fear of AI as a music producer for the first time.

The producer has been number one on Beatport and has millions of streams on Spotify.

A simple test is conducted to identify AI-made tracks among regular tracks.

The challenges faced by musicians, including the struggle for fair pay from streaming services.

Music producers often rely on touring and additional services to make a living.

The music industry is dominated by corporations looking to maximize profits, potentially at the expense of producers.

AI music tools have significantly improved, causing concern for the future of human music producers.

All the previewed music samples at the beginning of the video were made using AI.

AI music creation is as simple as describing the desired song to an AI, which then generates it.

The AI-generated tracks are trending and have amassed a significant number of streams.

The producer demonstrates how to create AI music using different styles and genres.

Current limitations of AI music, such as phasing issues in the high end, are expected to be resolved soon.

The rapid advancement of AI in music production is causing the producer to question the future of the industry.

AI could potentially replace human producers, offering music on demand without the need for royalties.

The producer is both excited and scared about the implications of AI in music production.

The producer invites viewers to share their thoughts on how AI might change music forever.