They can't. They have no power to ban anything. I didn't see auto-tune mentioned. Just AI.
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House Hearing on Radio Royalty & AI
- Thread starter TheBigA
- Start date
They can't. They have no power to ban anything. I didn't see auto-tune mentioned. Just AI.
The difference is purely semantic. Either way you're using computer algorithms to generate a synthetic voice that does not match what a human actually sung into a microphone.
But AI is the cool new thing that some groups want to stop. Auto-tune has been around for years.
And what's coming out of Los Angeles, New York, London and everywhere else that's producing pop music for American radio. The voice processing is not AI because someone actually sings the song and then the computer wizardry corrects the off notes. As for the synthesized backing tracks, that's kind of AI but it's done far more frequently on pop and urban recordings than country. An entire genre, EDM, is based on synthesized beats. No musicians are being denied work by any of it. I doubt that any self-respecting bassist or drummer would want to lower himself or herself to playing the soulless, mechanical sounds of EDM. It would be like asking a concert pianist to sit in on a recording session of "Chopsticks."
What about Paris and Munich? Then everybody can talk about pop music.
The corollary doesn't necessarily match. With autotune, the computer algorithm is used to filter and enhance a real human voice -- which is no different than a digital guitar amp used to filter and enhance a real electric guitar. Most modern day drum machines are actually recorded samples of a real drummer doing the snare hits, the kick drum hits. Using a drum machine isn't really AI. The similarity is the use of the computer program used to sample and filter. The difference is the way the computer program is implemented. With AI, the computer algorithm is being used to put together an entire track, from samples obtained either by a content creator prompting the algorithm or the AI just gleaning it off the 'net.
For example, I could use AI to 'record' my own songs, prompting the AI with samples of my own voice, guitars, drums, bass, etc., and I'm sure that would be OK.
But if I used Jimi Hendrix's guitar samples and Robert Plant's voice samples to create my own AI 'song', that would be problematic.
So there is a difference. I'm sure the difference could be written into a law, should a law ever be written concerning AI produced music.
....and most of those 'soulless' drum beats were made by a real drummer, when the original samples were recorded, and he or she got paid to make the recordings.
Never realized that. Thanks for the correction. Does that only apply to samples from known and copyrighted songs or to all beats used in the making of EDM recordings?
I don't know the particulars, but I have an Alesis Drum Machine from the 2000's and I know, from doing some research at the time, that the drum hits are real samples, and there's no way a studio drummer didn't get paid for recording them. I think that using a drum machine on a recording doesn't mean the original drummer is due any royalties -- you probably paid his or her royalties when you bought the drum machine.
I think it works that way.
To be clear: All this does is give music consumers a tool if buying real music matters to them. If it doesn't, then they will continue to buy whatever they want. And based on the charts, music consumers don't spend a lot of time finding out how the sausage was made. They just want to know if it tastes good.
And even songs with a "real drummer" have the drum track "pocketed", where everything is lined up to the grid so that the drummer's timing is always 100% perfect. This removes all of the "groove" and "flow" of a live drum track, and effectively makes it the same thing as a drum machine.
Music producers call it "pitching and pocketing". Every single song that comes through their studio gets "pitched" (the singers' voices are pitch-corrected) and "pocketed" (the drum track is snapped to the grid).
Listen to Steely Dan. Very common technique. Over 40 years old. Perfect!
It's part of the creative process. The fact that there are names for it is an indication for how common it is. There have been numerous seminars on the process, and it's viewed to be as musical as playing actual notes. After Milli Vanilli, NARAS had to review its procedures to determine if this kind of thing is worthy of Grammy awards. The conclusion they reached was as long as everyone on the session is properly credited, it's worthy of a Grammy.
The issue with AI isn't automation, but that performances are being stolen and reused without credit. Therefore the original musicians aren't getting paid. This is a money issue, not whether or not it's real.
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Exactly. It's like dressing up for a job interview. What you're putting on a recording is the performance people are going to know you and that song by, so it had better be something that stands the test of time and isn't full of false notes and mistimed percussion. Save the "magical" concert performances -- which are often, honestly, more ragged than remarkable -- for the people who paid to see you play and are there more for a good time (often substance-aided) than to hear technical perfection.
One more thing: If you think it only happens in the studio, and doesn't happen on stage, you're wrong. People want to hear the performances they heard on record when they see those musicians live. So the goal for them is to recreate the studio experience on stage. The crew wheels in a rack of studio gear, and presto: They have all the equipment they used to make the original records.
Then there's taking AI on the road. I just got a press release from Randy Travis, who is taking his AI-created music on tour using the singer whose voice was used in the record:
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (September 17, 2024) - Country Music Hall of Famer Randy Travis has announced that the More Life Tour will hit the road again in 2025! Following a successful 2024 run, Randy, his original touring band, and special guest vocalist James Dupré are ready to bring this extraordinary musical experience to fans across the country. The tour promises an unforgettable journey through Travis' chart-topping hits, enhanced by video highlights from his celebrated career in music, film and television. Presale begins September 18 at 10 A.M., with public tickets available on Friday, September 20 at 10 A.M. Fans can find ticket information at RandyTravis.com.
Although Travis won't perform vocally due to the stroke he suffered in 2013, he will appear on stage with his wife, Mary, engaging with fans, interacting with the band, and celebrating the music. Dupré and the band will perform all of his iconic No. 1 hits, including “On the Other Hand,” “Forever and Ever, Amen,” and “Three Wooden Crosses.”
Then there's taking AI on the road. I just got a press release from Randy Travis, who is taking his AI-created music on tour using the singer whose voice was used in the record:
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (September 17, 2024) - Country Music Hall of Famer Randy Travis has announced that the More Life Tour will hit the road again in 2025! Following a successful 2024 run, Randy, his original touring band, and special guest vocalist James Dupré are ready to bring this extraordinary musical experience to fans across the country. The tour promises an unforgettable journey through Travis' chart-topping hits, enhanced by video highlights from his celebrated career in music, film and television. Presale begins September 18 at 10 A.M., with public tickets available on Friday, September 20 at 10 A.M. Fans can find ticket information at RandyTravis.com.
Although Travis won't perform vocally due to the stroke he suffered in 2013, he will appear on stage with his wife, Mary, engaging with fans, interacting with the band, and celebrating the music. Dupré and the band will perform all of his iconic No. 1 hits, including “On the Other Hand,” “Forever and Ever, Amen,” and “Three Wooden Crosses.”
Will Dupre be singing in his own voice, or mouthing reconstituted Travis vocals as he did on the "new" Travis song put out earlier this year?
Does it matter?
I guess you'll have to ask the people who are going to be buying tickets to see this show. Will they be expecting to hear the virtually unknown Dupre sing while Travis sits there and smiles, or will they expect to hear Travis' voice coming out of Dupre's mouth, with Travis looking on with approval? Or is the whole appeal of the event having the opportunity to be in the presence of a beloved country singer while his songs are performed, whatever the means?
Or they can just roll tape. Major acts like the Eagles have been caught using pre-recorded vocals during their "live" concerts, because fans recorded multiple different shows and when you line up the recordings, they have 100% identical vocals.
The term for that is a 'backing track'.
Yeah, and the philosophies (perfection on stage vs. a 'real performance') and conclusions are divided as to whether the audience is being ripped off or not. Some think so, as they paid for a live performance. Others maybe don't care. In a sense, it's Milli Vanilli all over again. One of their shows had to stop momentarily when the tape broke. We're back to that again, only a more high tech version.
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