How Musicians Are Fashioning Creativity With AI

GoogleGOOG
recently announced the creation of a new AI system, MusicLM, which is capable of generating music in any genre using a mere text description. TechCrunch reports that, fearing the risks, the company has not announced a release date.

As AI (artificial intelligence) gains a larger presence in the music industry, some artists remain wary of the technology while others are embracing the opportunities that it offers to power their songwriting creativity. One company helping bridge the gap is WaveAI and its advanced lyrical AI used by millions of artists and creators.

WaveAI places artists at the center of its songwriting tools, collecting no royalties or ownership of their work. By enhancing human creativity rather than replacing it, cofounder and CEO of WaveAI, Dr. Maya Ackerman, a globally recognized expert in the field of generative AI, is setting a new standard for AI-powered songwriting.

“I believe that when collaborating with AI, this whole idea of the user being fully in control is so critical, and one should give all the credit to the person. We do that, and it helps with adoption and is just ethically correct,” says Ackerman. “It takes a little more care in designing the product, but that is where the magic will happen.”

In solving real artist problems with AI, instead of merely inserting the technology into the space and allowing it to supersede, Ackerman and her team developed LyricStudio. The AI-powered lyric generation tool valued by novice songwriters for its ease and accessibility.

Using advanced AI technology, the service analyzes an artist’s unique composition style and generates lyrics that match the voice and aesthetic. Seasoned professional and novice songwriters alike are boosting their productivity and overcoming common roadblocks in their work.

Last August, American hip-hop artist Curtiss King released an album DIY 2 that reached number one on iTunes Hip Hop charts. The release was created using LyricStudio. He is not alone with 15% of all WaveAI users identifying as professional rappers, singers/songwriters or producers.

King says that the idea of AI and its emerging technology had always piqued his interest. However, like most of my independent music peers, specifically online, he didn’t know what its arrival would mean for the creative process or long-term job security.

“It was this idea that AI wasn’t here to replace us as songwriters or producers, but to essentially assist us in being more efficient in our music making process,” says King. “I found that really intriguing, and that perspective ultimately led me to using LyricStudio to help me craft some songs for my first album in over five years.”

As someone who has written and produced his own music for more than 20 years, King considers using AI technology in his work “a game changer.” The technology, he says, offered him the creative peace of mind to focus on performing his best.

“It was like having someone in the studio that instantly fed me fresh imagery, words, and rhymes that would have normally taken me hours to research and recall,” King explains. “Initially, it did take some getting used to mainly because I can be a very stubborn musician when it comes to my process. But truth be told as a videographer, content creator, music producer and recording artist, I could use all the help I can to maximize my skills and time, and to avoid burnout.”

Ackerman, named a “Woman of Influence” by the Silicon Valley Business Journal, is globally recognized expert in the field of generative AI who has been researching and developing innovative generative AI models for text, music and art since 2014. Focused on harnessing the power of AI to enhance and elevate human creativity, she has more than 50 peer-reviewed research publications under her name, and her work has been cited in more than 1,200 publications.

With this expertise, Ackerman and her team plan to release MelodyStudio now in beta. The one-of-a-kind generative AI engine helps artists craft original, professional-quality lead sheets complete with chords and vocal melodies. In the process, artists will shift their approach to songwriting and push the boundaries of the music industry as a whole.