Befriend the enemy: musicians increasingly using AI despite celebrity protest

Most musicians use artificial intelligence (AI) in their workflow, despite having a rather negative view of using the technology in the creative process, a new survey finds.

An increasing number of musicians, including A-list celebrities like Billie Eilish and Katy Perry, are protesting against AI music generation tools, citing copyright infringement and a lack of compensation.

However, a new survey from LANDR, a music software company, found that as many as 87% of artists use AI tools in their music workflow.

The survey included 1,241 music makers from LANDR’s global community, representing various levels of experience.

Over 70% of respondents have a positive view of AI for technical or promotional tasks, while only 46% support its use for creative tasks such as songwriting and ideation.

Still, 66% of respondents report using AI for creative tasks, with the most common uses including the creation of lead vocals (18%) and creation of drum patterns and instrumental parts (16%).

Nearly one in three (29%) respondents say they use AI song generators – specific tools designed for music creation – at some stage in their workflow.

While the findings suggest the widespread use of AI among musicians, they should be interpreted with caution. As LANDR offers AI-powered music production tools, its community may be more open to using the technology in the creative process.

At the same time, the results highlight that even critics of AI rely on the technology.

Pop star Taylor Swift, who spoke against AI being used to spread misinformation after becoming a victim of deepfake pornography, faced backlash earlier this year as fans suspected the use of AI to create promotional videos for her album “The Life of a Showgirl.”

Paul McCartney, who has attracted criticism for using AI to extricate John Lennon’s voice to complete an old song, has recently joined the music industry protest against AI by releasing a silent track.

Concerns over ethics and brainrot

Although artists don’t shy away from using AI, the survey reveals they are concerned about its impact on music quality and ethics.

Nearly half (46%) worry that the use of AI will result in the creation of generic, soulless, or low-quality music, while 43% are concerned about using artists’ work without their consent.

One in three respondents (34%) reports concern over AI causing brainrot and dependence on tech.

AI-generated music, however, seems to be finding its way into listeners' ears.

“Walk My Walk” by Breaking Rust, which recently hit number one on the Billboard Country Digital Song Sales chart, is an entirely AI-generated product.

This comes as no surprise, given that most people can no longer distinguish AI-generated songs from those created by humans, according to a recent Deezer/Ipsos survey.

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