The Chicago Journal

Grammy Awards post strict rules for AI-generated music

Grammy — Technology has been a crucial instrument in music creation, and musicians have risen to fame in recent decades as a result of years of invention.

Cher pioneered the usage of auto-tune in the late 1990s with her hit “Believe,” ushering in a new era of music production.

Auto-tune would become a big contributor to various performers throughout the 2000s and 2010s.

As 2023 approached, artificial intelligence began to gain traction in a variety of industries, and it wouldn’t be long until music was exposed to a new set of revolutionary tools.

While widely debated, the usage of AI-generated music has proven difficult to ignore, even for the prestigious Grammy Awards.

Many people were surprised when the grand stage of the music business issued its decision on the usage of AI-generated music.

It does, however, come with certain tight rules.

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Considerations

The Recording Academy, the institution in charge of the Grammy Awards, established new guidelines ahead of the 2024 ceremony.

The guidelines state that “human creators” are eligible.

While songs featuring AI-generated music can be nominated, evidence of human contribution is required.

“If there’s an AI voice singing the song or AI instrumentation, we’ll consider it,” said Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy.

“But in a songwriting-based category, it has to have been written mostly by a human.”

The guideline

The 66th Grammy Awards will be held on February 24, 2024, and the guidelines give further information on how they will address AI-generated music.

“The Grammy Award recognizes excellence. Only human creators are eligible to be submitted for consideration for, nominated for, or win a Grammy Award,” it wrote.

“A work that contains no human authorship is not eligible in any Categories. A work that features elements of AI material is eligible in applicable categories.”

“However: the human authorship component of the work submitted must be meaningful and more than de minimis; such human authorship component must be relevant to the category in which such work is entered.”

“The authors of any AI material incorporated into the work are not eligible to be nominees or Grammy recipients insofar as their contribution to the portion of the work that consists of such AI material is concerned.”

Accommodating the future

Mason admitted that artificial intelligence will affect the music industry’s future.

He encouraged the Grammys to address AI-related concerns rather than dismiss them.

“How can we adapt to accommodate? How can we set guardrails and standards?” Mason challenged.

“There are a lot of things that need to be addressed around AI as it relates to our industry.”

Deepfake vocals

The Grammy rules come at a time when AI-generated music has taken over the internet, with deepfake tunes becoming viral.

For example, David Guetta, a two-time Grammy winner, used AI to replace Eminem on an Eminem single earlier this year.

The fake single “Heart on My Sleeve” featuring AI-generated Drake and The Weeknd, on the other hand, received the most attention.

Universal Music Group ordered that the music be deleted, claiming copyright violations.

According to a UMG spokesman, the AI-generated song posed an important dilemma to music industry stakeholders, pushing them to choose between the side of humanity and the need for creative expression and the side of fraud that denies artists their just recompense.

Universal Music Group allegedly requested that streaming giants Spotify and Apple Music prohibit AI software startups from utilizing the label’s music.

As indicated by the increase of deepfake tracks, AI software businesses generally train their technology with the label’s songs.

Artists and AI

Sir Paul McCartney has announced plans for a “final Beatles record” to be released through AI with the assistance of filmmaker Peter Jackson.

“He [Jackson] was able to extricate John’s voice from a ropey little bit of cassette that had John [Lennon]’s voice and a piano,” said McCartney.

“He could separate them with AI — he could tell the machine, “That’s the voice, that’s the guitar, lose the guitar,” and he did that, so it has great uses.”

“We were able to take John’s voice and get it pure through this AI,” McCartney added.

“So then we could mix the record as you would normally do.”

Meanwhile, songwriter Don McLean claims that AI-generated music will not be “worse” than some of today’s tracks.

However, Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter says AI’s prominence isn’t what his old band stood for.

“We tried to use these machines to express something extremely moving that a machine cannot feel, but a human can,” said Bangalter.

“We were always on the side of humanity and not on the side of technology.”

Iren Cara, iconic 80s singer, passed away

Irene Cara, the “Fame” and “Flashdance” singer and actress, died this weekend at the age of 63.

Judith A. Moose, her publicist, confirmed Cara’s death, revealing the singer died at her home in Florida.

The news

Moose announced Irene Cara’s death on Twitter, writing:

“Please share your thoughts and memories of Irene. I’ll be reading each and every one of them and know she’ll be smiling from Heaven.”

“She adored her fans. She was a beautifully gifted soul whose legacy will live forever through her music and films.”

In addition, Irene Cara’s publicist shared a statement online, giving more details.

“It is with profound sadness that on behalf of the family I announce the passing of Irene Cara,” Moose wrote.

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“The Academy Award-winning actress, singer, songwriter and producer passed away in her Florida home.”

“Her cause of death is currently unknown and will be released when information is available.”

“Irene’s family has requested privacy as they process their grief. She was a beautifully gifted soul whose legacy will live forever through her music and films.”

“Funeral services are pending and a memorial for her fans will be planned at a future date,” the statement continued.

“We were working on amazing projects that would have made her and her fans incredibly happy.”

“Her manager and I will finish them. She’d want that.”

Cara’s career

When she was younger, Irene Cara first appeared on the television series Electric Company.

As a teenager, Cara starred in several movies, including “Aaron Loves Angela” and “Sparkle.”

However, Irene Cara made a name for herself in the 1980 musical Fame.

In the film, she played Coco Hernandez, who attends the New York High School of Performing Arts.

Read also: Simu Liu rips Quentin Tarantino on Twitter

In addition, Irene Cara produced a hit with the film’s theme song and a second with the ballad “Out Here on My Own.”

As a result, she was nominated for two Grammys and a Golden Globe that year.

In 1983, Irene Cara produced another classic hit when she co-wrote the lyrics to “Flashdance…What a Feeling”.

“Flashdance…What a Feeling” became a radio hit and won her an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Irene Cara also earned a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance in the Female Category.

References:

Iren Cara, ‘80s pop star behind ‘Fame’ and ‘Flashdance’ theme songs, dies at 63

Oscar-winning actor and singer Irene Cara dies aged 63

Takeoff dies after a stray bullet from a nearby shooting hits him

Takeoff, the 28-year-old Grammy-nominated musician, died Tuesday after a shooting at a bowling alley in Houston, Texas.

According to his record company’s statement, the Migos rapper died from a “stray bullet.”

The shooting

The shooting in Texas occurred at 2:30 on a balcony outside 810 Billiards and Bowling Alley.

Takeoff was playing dice with his uncle and bandmate Quavo across at the Bowling Alley.

According to police, 40 to 50 guests attended a private party when someone opened fire.

Upon arrival, officers said they found a large crowd and a man with a gunshot wound to the head or neck.

However, the man was pronounced dead.

Meanwhile, two other people were injured and were taken to hospital.

No arrest was made.

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Police response

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said he didn’t want to speculate that Takeoff was the target of the shooting.

“Based on what people say about him, he’s well respected, non-violent,” said Finner.

“I would not expect him to be involved, but I do want to wait on the investigation.”

“But we have no reason to believe that he was involved in anything criminal at the time, just as people describe him as very peaceful, loving, a great entertainer.”

Later, Chief Finner urged witnesses at the scene to come forward.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, he said:

“Please step up, get the information to us so we can bring down some closure to this family who’s hurting right now.”

Takeoff

Kirsnick Khari Ball, better known as Takeoff, was one-third of the Atlanta band Migos.

The band is among the most successful, producing songs that hit the charts.

As a result, they made hits like Walk It Talk It, Stir Fry and Versace.

However, the group broke into the mainstream in 2016 with their single Bad and Boujee, which topped the US charts.

The song was also nominated for Best Rap Performance at the Grammy Awards.

Although Takeoff didn’t appear in the song because he missed the recording session, the rapper was a key architect of the Migos sound.

As a result, Migos is now famous for its punchy vocal triplets and scattered, stammering rhythms.

Read also: Rap icon Coolio passed away on Wednesday, aged 59

Tributes

After the news broke, tributes for Takeoff began flooding social media as friends, fans, and collaborators mourned the rapper.

Drake did a remix of Versace, which gave the band a boost in the charts, and wrote on Instagram:

“I got the best memories of all of us seeing the world together and bringing light to every city we touch. That’s what I’ll focus on for now.”

Gucci Mane recently worked with Takeoff and Quavo on the song Us vs. Them.

Additionally, he shared a photo of the rapper on Instagram and said the news broke his heart.

Atlanta legend Outkast wrote:

“Rest in peace, Takeoff. Sending our deepest condolences and prayers to his family, friends, and community of people touched by his craft.”

Finally, many musicians are urging fans not to share videos of Takeoff’s final moments online out of respect.

Reference:

Migos rapper Takeoff killed by ‘stray bullet,’ record label claims