AI music companies say their tools could democratize the art form. Some artists are skeptical.

AI-generated musical creations continue to go viral, from songs like “10 Drunk Cigarettes” to “BBL Drizzy.” However, despite the recent popularity of artificial intelligence-generated music, the use of the technology has been subject to intense criticism.

Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group AI sued music companies Uncharted Labs and Suno filed a lawsuit this summer over software that allows users to create music from text prompts, alleging that copyrighted songs were used without permission to train artificial intelligence. Universal Music Group has no affiliation with NBCUniversal, which operates NBC News.

Record labels worked quickly to remove music featuring AI versions of Drake and The Weeknd’s voices.

And more 200 musical artistsThis year, including Billie Eilish, Stevie Wonder and Nicki Minaj, signed an open letter calling on AI companies to “protect against the predatory use of AI to steal the voices and likenesses of professional artists, violate the rights of creators, and destroy the music ecosystem.” . ”

Despite the pullback, AI music companies have continued to grow and are using a new argument to support their business: accessibility.

Websites like Sound Drawing, Musical, AIVA And Beautiful It allows users to easily create music with artificial intelligence using different inputs.

Users can choose from different types of music and then adjust things like tempo, mood, and instruments that appear in the music.

AI music companies say the new ease of use allows users who previously couldn’t easily create music to create their own content.

“You don’t need to buy fancy equipment. “You don’t need to take music lessons,” said Cassie Speer, Boomy’s director of “creative success.” “There are so many things you need to do to make music, and Boomy’s goal is to allow anyone who wants to try being creative to come to our site and try it easily.”

Speer has traveled across the country to educate students about generative AI technology and Boomy, and said he hopes AI technology can offer low-income students a new level of access to music.

“Marginalized people are often left behind in technology and are not given the same access,” he said. “If we can partner with people who want to do this right, provide resources to students, and have a symbiotic relationship with the music industry and schools, we can achieve so much more.”

Access to music education in US public schools is shrinking

according to Art Education Data Project8% of all students in U.S. public schools did not have access to music education during the school day, a data collection and analysis project conducted by a nonprofit arts education organization.

Other companies have turned to the idea that AI could lower barriers to music creation and democratize the art form. Software company Musicfy said in a blog post that its technology “lowers the learning curve, allowing beginners to focus on creativity rather than technical challenges.”

Canadian musician Grimes also underlined this ideal: invites his fans She wants to make music using her AI-generated voice and writes to X: “If you record music with us, we can collect and pay royalties directly to anyone who uses AI Grimes vocals using smart contracts! The rly of the future is now! “This is very nice.”

Speer ran a course on AI music tools using Boomy for young musicians in Denver.

Some of the local artists performing at Youth on Record’s festival support the integration of artificial intelligence technology into music education and production.

“Imagine how much more vibrant the Denver scene would be if everyone sitting at home with a song idea in their head but no keyboard skills or guitar skills or anything to really pull it off had a tool at their disposal.” Start this for them,” said Regi Worles, a member of the band Dog Tag.

Worles attended the AI ​​workshop with some group friends showcasing Boomy’s software.

“I really don’t think anyone should be held back from following their dreams because they don’t know how to use software that costs $400 or more in the first place,” he said. “If AI is a way to start influencing this in a different direction, then I’m pretty open to that.”

Boomy is free to use but has different pricing tiers depending on the number of songs one wants to stream. Boomy keeps 20% of the artist’s profits if a song is created and distributed using its software, Mitchell said.

Any track created using its software becomes the sole property of Boomy.

Dog Tag bassist and vocalist Michael Merola said he uses AI tools to aid his creative process, such as asking ChatGPT for synonyms for words in lyrics.

Worles said the duo also used music-specific AI tools for inspiration.

“I even show Michael this: ‘Oh, hey, here’s what I was thinking, I listen mostly for the melody but with some chord ideas in the background.’ Then he said, ‘Oh, I can do this better, watch.’ And now we’re writing the song. So it’s always like a jumping off point.

But not all of the up-and-coming musicians attending the festival in Denver were excited about the advancement of technology.

“I’m very worried about this, to be honest,” said singer-songwriter Genevieve Libien.

“I am skeptical about this. Probably because music is so human to me and is at the core of our humanity and is inseparable from it. “So any kind of artificial intelligence seems like an insult to this sanctity,” he added.

Although Boomy attended the workshop out of curiosity, he did not change his mind.

“I personally don’t see myself using generative AI,” he said. “I think my biggest fear is turning on the radio and having every song that plays sound like ChatGPT.”

Creative professionals across industries echoed Libien’s concerns about how AI could impact the arts and creative professions. In September 2023, writers ended one of the longest Hollywood writers’ strikes in history after film and TV companies agreed to put guardrails in place regarding how AI is used in their industries.

This year, Tennessee became the first state to take legal action to protect musicians and artists from AI, passing a bill that seeks to ensure AI tools are not used to copy artists’ voices without their consent. Associated Press.

Still, Speer hopes that integrating AI into music education can be used for good.

“I hope this technology allows for more resources and more companies to collaborate with public school systems and nonprofits to support their missions so that music and the arts are never left behind,” he said.