Page 88 - Fortune-November 01, 2018

TECH
FOCUS

software. Today, recording pros can use tin pan up with is a real kaleidoscope of meanings
A.I.-powered programs to cue an array of valley and topic and nouns and verbs all sort of
instrumentation (from full orchestral ar- slamming into each other,” said the influen-
rangements to hip-hop beats), then alter it by tial pop star in a 1997 documentary featuring
mood, tempo, or genre (from heavy metal to 12 the tool.
bluegrass). (See more ways A.I. is changing Like-minded artists insist A.I.-assisted
how people work on page 96.) Debut position of songwriting is a boon, not a threat. Taryn
“It’s like the future of self-driving cars,” “Not Easy,” written Southern, a singer and former American Idol
by Grammy-
says Leonard Brody, entrepreneur and winning producer contestant who released her debut album,
cofounder of Creative Labs, a joint venture Alex da Kid and IAmAI, last year, composed the eight-song
with Creative Artists Agency that invests IBM Watson, on work with Amper, Watson Beat, and other
in programs to help audio creators get their Billboard’s Hot software, plus human help.
works delivered to the public. “Level 1 is an Rock Songs chart “A person who’s been trained on guitar
artist using a machine to assist them. Level 2 in July 2018 since they were 8 years old is going to be mas-
is where the music is crafted by a machine terful,” says Southern. “It would take them an
but performed by a human. Level 3 is where hour to bang out a song. For people who don’t
the whole thing is machines.” have that skill set, it could take weeks.” As
A.I. claiming ownership of a third of the 13,000 with arguments against synths and samples,
top 40 may be surprising to the casual listener, Pieces of sheet “It’s not putting anyone out of work, just mak-
but it’s a low bar for Drew Silverstein, CEO music analyzed ing them work differently,” she says.
of Amper, an A.I.-based music composition by Sony’s Flow Producer, songwriter, and Black Eyed Peas
software company in New York City. Am- Machines to member Will.i.am has another take: There’s
per’s product allows musicians to create and create Benoît nothing artificial about music created by A.I.
download “stems”—unique portions of a track Carré’s Beatles- “When you say ‘artificial intelligence’ to com-
esque “Daddy’s
like a guitar riff or a hi-hat cymbal pattern— Car” in 2016 pose music, what part of it is helping creative
and rework them. Silverstein sees predictive songwriters? Is the A.I. helping you compose?
tools as an evolution in the process of music Distribute? Who’s listening? How much
creation. “Starting from quill and parchment money will it make? No, bro. That’s a new
centuries ago, then moving into analog and $6B machine-learning tool”—and nothing more.
tape and mobile [devices]—A.I. is really just For artists and their reps, money—for
the next step,” he says. Venture everything from production costs to copyright
Silverstein isn’t the only one with that view. investment across and royalties—is a key issue. Southern, for
Large technology companies also offer A.I.- 643 machine- example, shares writing credits on her album
learning/A.I.
powered tools and services for musicmaking. deals in 2017, per with Amper. But the software allowed her to
Among them: IBM Watson Beat, Google Ma- PitchBook use funds that would have been convention-
genta’s NSynth, Sony’s Flow Machines, and ally spent on human songwriters, session
Spotify’s Creator Technology Research Lab. musicians, and studio time for a management
The resources, intended for use by artists and team, publicists, and videographers—other
labels, use algorithms to analyze libraries of essential components for the modern profes-
songs and sales charts to predict what may sional entertainer.
have the best chance of charting (and when). Or, as Will.i.am puts it: “Michael Jackson,
Though the latest developments in A.I. are Quincy Jones, Luther Vandross—think about
helping fuel its use in popular music, it’s not all of those composers. Microphones, engineers,
really a new idea. More than two decades ago, “It’snot and tape cost money.” In other words, A.I. can’t
David Bowie helped create the Verbasizer, replicate the innate talent of those songwriters,
a program for Apple’s Mac that random- putting let alone the complicated recording processes
ized portions of his inputted text sentences anyoneout they used to create their best-known works.
to create new ones with new meanings and ofwork, So don’t expect artificial intelligence to
moods—an advanced version of a cut-up write the next “Space Oddity” anytime soon.
technique he used, writing out ideas, then justmaking But an artist with the right chops and ingenu-
physically slicing and rearranging them to see themwork ity might get there faster with A.I.—even if, as
what stuck. Bowie made use of the Verbasizer Luddites and futurists surely agree, this uni-
for his 1995 album Outside. “What you end differently.” verse will never see another David Bowie.

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