See How AI Is Helping Artists Make Better Music

Credit: Google

Artificial Intelligence or AI, is starting to play a more prominent role in our lives. It has already made its way into the medical sector, by helping doctors spot abnormalities in medical scans. It has also played similarly important roles in logistics warehouses, agricultural farmland and in smart devices. But it will eventually take the music industry by storm as well.

MJ Jacob an engineer with a passion for writing and performing rap music, is attempting to infuse AI into the way he creates his music tracks. Living in a troubled home, MJ learnt to balance his interest in technology with his love of rap music, eventually turning it into a workable career. He drew inspiration from his idols, who initially faced the same trials and tribulations.

Just like they eventually pulled themselves out of poverty or troubled homes to eventually become successful artists, MJ too believed that he could emulate this and turn his fortunes around. He now works from his Manhattan apartment as a customer engineer for Google Cloud. He helps companies figure out how to use machine learning and AI to meet their business needs.

But in his free time, he writes lyrics, produces hip-hop tracks and creates YouTube videos’ detailing how he does it all. Recently, he posted a video showcasing how he created a hip-hop beat by using AI. MJ combined tracks that he and his producer created over the years, then fed it into Magenta, which is Google’s open-source tool that helps create music and art.

Musicians like YACHT have used Magenta in the past to create actual music albums. But in MJ’s case, the AI would get to work by utilizing his pre-defined “hip-hop” dataset. The machine learning technology is able to create new melodies and drum beats based on what it has been given. MJ then uses the results to construct his own tracks and add lyrics to them.

The point that MJ would like to express to skeptics is that AI doesn’t dilute the creativity of an artist. Instead, it adds to it, allowing creators to build better tracks with improved efficiency and efficacy. He says, “AI never replaced anything, it only assisted.”

MJ’s most popular song, “Time Will Heal,” which has been viewed more than a million times is inspired by his sister, a survivor of sexual abuse. “She taught me so much about what it means to be a strong human, to go through hell and back and still be able to make it,” MJ says. They chose to release the track to share her story and help other victims of such abuse.

But he isn’t stopping here, MJ plans on creating a 3 or 4 track EP co-produced by AI. He says, “Both music and tech are so fulfilling for me that they have the ability to intertwine so well. Now I’m pushing myself even more musically, and I’m pushing myself even more technically. It’s cool to be able to contribute to a new concept in the world.”