Timbaland sparks debate as he signs an AI artist to his label
The artist is called TaTa, and this move has been met with vast opposition.
The growing rise of AI will see most vocations and industries either succumb to this development or learn to use it somehow.
Timbaland describes TaTa as 'a living, learning, autonomous music artist built with AI.
He stressed that TaTa is more than just an avatar or animated character. He's even pioneering a genre around his new artist, something he calls A-pop, along with a new company to manage his artificially created exploits.
He probably will not refrain from collaborating with human beings. He has quite a roster of talents that he has helped shape. People like Missy Elliot, Aaliyah, Justin Timberlake, and Keri Hilson. He unearthed a lot of those talents himself.
The idea with the AI artist TaTa will be to blend human creativity with digital advancements.
Timbaland has aligned himself with an AI music company called Suno, an entity that has endured quite a bit of turmoil as a result of copyright infringement and concerns.
The quirky producer who helped pioneer R&B and hip hop from Virginia remains focused on this endeavour, bearing fruit. South Africans also owe him a lot as his famous stem, which he allowed to be used for free, is what built our nation's second anthem, Sister Bethina.
The industry, however, is not enjoying this idea. Famed American producer and long-time collaborator of Jay-Z, Young Guru, has perhaps been the loudest voice against this. He submitted that AI compromises the authenticity and human-generated passion that good music relies on.
'Human expression can never be reduced to this,' Young Guru said in a social media post.
Rapper Joyner Lucas also voiced his concerns, along with rapper Uncle Murda, and even British DJ Shy FX views this approach as flawed.
The enterprising maestro is still determined to make this work.
'I'm not just producing tracks anymore. I'm producing systems, stories, and stars from scratch,' he explained in an interview.
He is of the firm belief that AI will change the way music is made for the better. Streamlining the process and making things easier and quicker for producers and musicians.
The music industry might be on the precipice of dramatic change. One need only observe the impact of social media has on the way music is released and engaged with. Timbaland is gearing up to relase TaTa's debut single in the months to come.
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