Enriching Afrobeats with AI: Nigerian Producer Ignites the Music Scene

The role of Afrobeats in art creation has generated plenty of buzz among creators, publishers, and art consumers. Graphic images and video content are some of the most popular use cases of AI within art. However, more recently, innovations in Artificial Intelligence (AI) have become mainstream in music production. With it, sound producers and music artists can enhance their craft, significantly speeding up the time it takes to create works. 

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What Is the Role of AI in Music Production?

AI has already significantly disrupted how musicians create and consume music. Several AI music tools on the market are available to help artists write new songs, build base melodies, and compose full, original tracks. While some of the platforms have limits on the distribution of AI-generated music, many platforms offer more benefits. Several paid AI-generation software allow producers full rights to their songs and the ability to earn on them.

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How Does AI Work in Music Production?

AI in music production works the same way it does with text generation. The technology generates new music and algorithms by analysing vast amounts of musical data. As it analyses the data, it learns new musical compositions, including each music type’s unique properties. Then, after it has digested enough information, it can generate something completely new and original. Music AI software uses neural networks to master the various patterns of the songs in the database.

Benefits of AI in Music Production

One of the primary benefits of AI in music production is the capacity for quickly generating creative ideas and variations. Music production can be frustrating and time-consuming, and AI can significantly speed up things. The software can swiftly analyse and synthesise musical data, creating new tunes, beats, melodies and variations in next to no time. With AI, artists can focus on churning out quality rather than just quantity. 

The Ethical Debate

Although AI has overwhelming benefits in music production, there are several concerns. The most pressing concern is that AI technology might eventually completely replace humans in the music industry, leading to widespread job loss. Some also argue about the ethical rights of AI software. This is because AI tools use the musical database to generate music made up of original songs, many of which are copyrighted. Also, there is a tendency for AI-generated music, similar to most predictive innovations, to become predictable and cliche. Although the software can create several thousand variations of a single theme, there are doubts about quality. This is because such songs may lack the emotional depth and distinct human quality that makes original music unique. 

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Navigating the Afrobeats Tune

The Afrobeats genre has attained global popularity in recent years. The exploits of music acts like Davido, Burna Boy, and Wizkid have helped bring its distinct tune to the notice of millions of fans worldwide. Technology is also helping to innovate how music acts in the country create their works. Recently, Nigerian producer Eclipse Nkasi jumped on the AI trend to create a ground-breaking album made entirely with AI technology. According to him, “AI doesn’t have to replace what we have. It gives people a new experience, and that’s why I believe AI is really going to shake things”.

Conclusion

According to Eclipse Nkasi, producing his album using AI took only $500 and three days instead of thousands of dollars and three months without AI. The album “Infinite Echoes” had lyrics and melodies generated with ChatGPT and other software. While Eclipse Nkasi’s move was the first of its kind in Nigeria, subsequent years will likely see the release of similar works as more producers experiment with AI in music production. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can AI Replace Human Creativity?

AI cannot replace human creativity, which is itself distinct. However, AI can enhance human creativity and speed up several repetitive tasks for better productivity. In music production, AI can help open the industry to more creatives. It also helps them create more original, quality tunes, especially when they mix AI-generated music with human-created ones.

How Does AI Work in Music Production?

AI can be used in music production to generate lyrics, beat, and melody. AI tools that use generative technologies, such as ChatGPT, can be used for the lyrics. On the other hand, several free and paid software can be used to generate the melody. Depending on the platform used, creators may or may not have the rights to distribute the final musical productions.

Will AI-Generated Music Become Popular?

Presently, it remains to be seen just how popular AI-generated music will be and if it will rival human creative acts. Much of the popularity of human music acts stems from their musical talents and personality. Although AI-generated music will continue to grow in the coming years, there’s no telling how well it will catch on, especially with regular music fans.