AI Might Help us to Focus on What Matters

Photo by ThisIsEngineering: https://www.pexels.com/photo/code-projected-over-woman-3861969/

Hello Dear Readers,

If you've logged onto social media lately, you'll have noticed that AI seems to be everywhere - it's pretty impossible to escape. Even on vintage computing groups, where you think there'd be little talk of modern software - a user will undoubtedly post a song they've "written" using generative AI tools - these rarely go down well with that demographic, by the way!

A cloud of obsolescence looms - will I be replaced? There's no doubt that certain musical jobs may go the way of the dodo - diversifying & adapting our skills will be key in maintaining the relevance of human endeavor, but how do we find comfort (ie copium) in what is essentially, an attack on human art?

Have you seen those people who pretend to live in Victorian times, or the 1940's? Anachronists: yeah, I never really got it either - but we must begin to accept that, if we wish to spurn AI, we are going to become these people. We must become comfortable with other people's bemusement (I've had a lot of practice at this!) and admit that, yes, we're sticking our heads in the sand - but that's ok, life is hard.

Going it alone will be tough of course, so finding community - a space to be your AI-free self, is going to be key. This might actually benefit us - separating us from old doom-scrolling habits and propelling us forward into new social spaces. You need to know that there are a lot - A LOT - of cool, quirky creative people who share your values.

The biggest crowds may disappear from human music, and that may feel like a loss. But did many these people ever really love music in the first place, or were they along for the ride and a good time? We could thank generative AI for removing that illusion perhaps? Additionally, will these pivotal changes allow us to focus on smaller, but realistic and soul-sustaining outcomes? In truth, an excess of fame seems to have caused issues for many stars over the years. I was playing Duke Ellington on an upright piano in a public space and a beaming lady told me I'd made her day, she'd not seen someone play like that in a long time - good experiences are still out there.

If the money disappears from music, does that mean the bad parts of our Industry; exploitation, greed, excess, overwork, lack of opportunity for the 99% - can be transformed into healthier, community-based outcomes? And is AI actually the cause of our distress here, or is it merely a symptom of the "race to the bottom" nature of the recording Industry? Do it cheap! Do it quick! Can we do better?

I suggest that, in this new paradigm, it will become crucial for artists to show their working method. Many AI songs have some kind of invented backstory (a fictional artist, a long-lost record) - this shows that human beings still love to tell (and hear) stories. Creating content/lore about how and why you made your songs may become more important than the songs themselves.

Most of us are terrible fortune tellers, still, we may often look to our AI future with dread. I think there'll be opportunities for us to live happy, fulfilling lives, though we'll perhaps to forgo the swimming pools and fur coats. As always, try to avoid bad actors - those who seem gleeful about your dismay, they have very little but mockery in their lives. If the internet goes down, we'll be the entertainers.

Anyhow, I know my Silent Movie-Pianist Great Nanna wouldn't want me to just lie there whilst a mustachioed AI villain tied to me to a train tracks. Keep asking questions!

Posted by MagicalSynthAdventure an expert in synthesis technology from last Century and Amiga enthusiast.

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