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Straits Times
30-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Viewpoint: What happens when you use AI to make a National Day song?
ST music correspondent Eddino Abdul Hadi tried to come up with a National Day song using generative AI. The result was lifeless and dull. SINGAPORE – As someone who has been playing the guitar for many years and has had experience writing, recording and releasing music before the advent of artificial intelligence (AI), I have mixed feelings about using the technology to come up with songs. I understand it can be a tool to discover new sonic possibilities, but I am also wary of its potential to devalue, and even replace, human labour. So, when the assignment from my editors – to come up with a National Day song using AI – fell into my lap, I approached it with both curiosity and dread. After reading up on the various platforms that allow users, regardless of music experience or expertise, to come up with music using generative AI, I decided on Suno. Based on reviews and feedback, it seems to be among the more intuitive ones that let users come up with songs quickly. A few minutes later, a complete song with lyrics, a human-like singing voice and instrumentation such as drums, guitars, strings and synthesizers was born. All I had to do was type in a few text prompts – which in this case was essentially something based on recent National Day Parade anthems such as Not Alone (2024) and Shine Your Light (2023). But I cannot take credit for, or feel any sense of ownership over, this tune, no more than I can call myself a chef after I microwave a frozen meal bought from 7-11. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore MHA to support HSA's crackdown on Kpod abusers and help in treatment of offenders: Shanmugam Business S'pore's economic resilience will face headwinds in second half of 2025 from tariffs, trade conflicts: MAS Business S'pore's Q2 total employment rises, but infocomm and professional services sectors see more job cuts Singapore Fewer than 1 in 5 people noticed suspicious items during MHA's social experiments Asia Powerful 8.8-magnitude quake in Russia's far east causes tsunami; Japan, Hawaii order evacuations Singapore Migrant workers who gave kickbacks to renew work passes were conservancy workers at AMK Town Council Asia 'Hashing things out': Japan, Vietnam, EU contest terms of US tariff deals behind the scenes Singapore Escape, discover, connect: Where new memories are made Titled Together, We Shine, it might pass as background or elevator music, but is way too generic and bland for anyone to ever take seriously as an anthem fit for the nation's 60th birthday. The lyrics are cliched, rife with monosyllabic rhymes ('way' with 'grey', 'tall' with 'all') and cobbled together using previous official NDP favourite ('We build with dreams, we build with care, our voices echo everywhere'). The male singing voice has, for some reason, a vague American accent, and the audio sounds so compressed and over-polished that it comes across lifeless and flat. You can listen to it here ( ) and judge for yourself. AI-made music has been in the news lately, mostly thanks to the whirlwind Spotify success of AI-generated indie rock band The Velvet Sundown . The concerning thing is, for the first month of its existence, the 'band' insisted they were real humans, despite many speculating they were an AI creation. While photos of the four members were clearly produced with gen-AI, The Velvet Sundown – whose music and image borrow heavily from retro 1970s rock – had a pretty convincing backstory on their profile. Their music was also automatically pushed to users' playlists by Spotify's algorithm – one of the reasons they got so big so quickly, while human music-makers struggle to get streams. It was only about a month after the quartet's June debut that they were revealed to be an 'art hoax'. But, like with most other tech, AI is just a tool, and not inherently bad. While platforms like Suno and Udio offer idiot-proof ways to generate immediate songs – the way I did with mine – there are many other ways that AI is being used to enhance human creativity in music. For example, Singapore-based online music-making platform BandLab has AI features designed to help and supplement human creativity, instead of replacing it. In an online workshop with the company's head of artist development and education Kevin Breuner, a musician and songwriter himself, I learnt how users can use its AI tools to help suggest ideas, enhance audio recordings and convert a human voice into an instrument. The bulk of the work in song creation ultimately falls on the artiste using the platform, so there is still a lot of emphasis on human ingenuity. Right now, there are a few tell-tale signs that a piece of music is written by software. In the case of The Velvet Sundown, the lead singer's voice inexplicably changes from song to song. But at the rate the technology is advancing, it will not be long before AI-generated music will sound so authentic that even the most seasoned music experts will not be able to tell it is artificial. And that is when music lovers, or anyone who consumes music in any form, has to decide if they value human artistry and inventiveness enough to always choose a work crafted by a real person over one churned out via binary code.
Straits Times
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Choosing music as a career: Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs and touring with Mandopop star A-mei
Music Lab Podcast Choosing music as a career: Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs and touring with Mandopop star A-mei Synopsis (headphones recommended): Each month, The Straits Times invites music acts to its podcast studio. In this special episode of Music Lab, ST's music correspondent Eddino Abdul Hadi hosts award-winning Singaporean composer, producer, and music director Evan Low. A recipient of the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award in 2024, Low has worked on over 200 songs. From left: Mr Evan Low, Singaporean Music Director and Music Producer, and Mr Eddino Abdul Hadi, Music Lab Host. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE He is best known for being a co-composer and musician on recent National Day Parade songs The Road Ahead (2021) sung by artistes such as Linying, Not Alone (2024) by Benjamin Kheng and the 2018 remake of We Are Singapore. The artiste also known as Evanturetime has also toured with international pop star and Taiwanese singer A-mei and has performed to massive crowds in venues such as the Beijing National Stadium in China. Low, who first took piano lessons at the age of five, graduated from Singapore Polytechnic with a Diploma in Music and Audio Technology. He then honed his skills at famed American music school Berklee College of Music, thanks to scholarships from the school as well as the Media Development Authority. This episode was recorded and filmed in front of a live audience of nearly 80 attendees on June 3 - at swish nightspot Rasa at Republic Plaza, as part of the ST Podcast Live! Sessions celebrating 180 years of The Straits Times in 2025. The third ST Podcast Live session is part of a series of events to celebrate 180 years of The Straits Times. ST PHOTO: REBEKAH CHIA Highlights (click/tap above): 2:17 Realising the impact of music: How Evan cried during piano practice when he was a kid 3:54 How he ended up choosing to further his studies in music instead of science 6:36 On developing his own set of 'special skills' while studying music in the US 10:56 The pressure of coming up with NDP songs 18:20 How he got singer Benjamin Kheng to venture outside his comfort zone on NDP song Not Alone 26:46 How he balances his finances as a full-time musician 29:25 On helping others achieve their dreams of pursuing music as a career Discover Evan Low's music at: Spotify: Instagram: Read Eddino Hadi's articles: Host: Eddino Abdul Hadi (dinohadi@ Produced by: ST Podcast Team & ST Outreach & Engagement Team Edited by: Amirul Karim Executive producers: Ernest Luis & Lynda Hong Discover previous artistes' live performances featured on Music Lab Podcast: Channel: Apple Podcasts: Spotify: Feedback to: podcast@ --- Follow more ST podcast channels: All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: ST Podcasts website: ST Podcasts YouTube: --- Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section: The App Store: Google Play: --
