{"id":86,"date":"2025-08-14T02:11:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-14T01:11:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/sound-of-change\/?p=86"},"modified":"2025-08-18T12:35:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T11:35:26","slug":"ai-and-music-whether-its-enhancing-it-or-replacing-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/sound-of-change\/2025\/08\/14\/ai-and-music-whether-its-enhancing-it-or-replacing-it\/","title":{"rendered":"AI and Music: Whether it\u2019s Enhancing it or Replacing it?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Picture By AI GPT Journal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The blending of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and music is rapidly transforming the soundscape of the 21st<\/sup> century. Tools like Suno AI and Udio, which debuted in 2024, can now generate full musical tracks, lyrics, instrumentals, and even vocals, which are based on simple text prompts. As the line between human-made and machine-generated music blurs, a new question emerges: Is AI enhancing artistic creativity, or is it replacing it altogether?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A New Definition of Creativity?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To examine this cultural turning point, Dr. Adam Behr, Head of Music Department at Newcastle University and a researcher in music, technology, and policy, shared his insights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cCreativity is hard to pin down. It\u2019s not just about producing something new, but about who produces it and why,\u201d Behr notes.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

According to him, AI tools don\u2019t necessarily expand the definition of creativity but provide alternative tools to achieve creative outputs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drawing comparisons to the 1997 case of The Verve\u2019s \u201cBittersweet Symphony,\u201d where the band lost rights over a sample from a Rolling Stones composition, Behr suggests that authorship and ownership have always been murky. With AI, these lines are now tangled than ever, particularly when machines produce music based on datasets of millions of human-created songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enhancing or Replacing? Context Matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When asked whether AI is enhancing or replacing creativity, Behr gave a balanced view: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cNot replacing creativity, yet. But at some point, it replaces some musical production jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

For instance, AI can now generate background music for ads, YouTube content, or TikTok in seconds. Previously, this work would have gone to freelance composers or small studios. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIf you need 30 seconds of nondescript, mid-tempo funk with no lyrics, why hire a human? In that way, AI is replacing Functionality, instead of artistry.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Nevertheless, Dr. Behr also perceives AI as a creativity enhancer for artists who use it experimentally, with quick trails, intertwining styles, and creating structure templates to inspire original compositions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This kind of dualism is resonated by a 2024 Music Ally<\/em> survey, which discovered that around 20% of independent artists have used AI music tools<\/a>, often to experiment, deliberate, or create early drafts instead of release-ready tracks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the wider industry level, a 2024 report by CVL Economics, commissioned by several industry group such as the Animation Guild and the Human Artistry Campaign, estimates that 204,000 entertainment jobs across the U.S., including roles in music, are at risk of disruption by AI over the next three years<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the meantime, TechRadar industry analysis has estimated that over 20,000 AI-generated songs are uploaded to Spotify every day<\/a>, raising questions about content overflow and diminishing opportunities for emerging human artists. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such studies provide an account of a fast-evolving creative landscape, where challenge is no longer in the manner in which AI is used, but why and by whom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethics, Voice Cloning, and Copyright Crisis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The use of AI to mimic the voices of famous artists is perhaps the most controversial topic in this discussion. Trends such as an AI-cloned voices of Billie Eilish or Drake have spread quickly on platforms like TikTok and SoundCloud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dr. Behr says, \u201cIt\u2019s fun on the surface, but it risks eroding trust. And legally, it\u2019s a mess.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

He explains that artists with a commercial voice identity, for example, Ed Sheeran, can often pursue legal action, but everyday people can\u2019t. \u201cHow do you prove voice ownership in a court of law when your voice changes with age, illness, or tone?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is echoed in a 2024 paper published in The IP Press, which noted that 91% of copyright frameworks globally still do not account for AI-generated vocal cloning<\/a>. As the author writes, \u201cWe are dealing with 20th-century laws in a 21st<\/sup>-century reality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s also concern about data training. If AI is trained on 10 million songs, how can artists whose work contributed to the dataset be compensated? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s a black box. There\u2019s no audit trail,\u201d says Behr.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Music Education and Ethical AI Use<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As an educator, Behr emphasizes the importance of students learning AI responsibly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s not about banning it. It\u2019s about using it ethically and creatively,\u201d Dr. Adam Behr says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In his view, students should be taught to use AI as a support system, such as testing ideas, structuring compositions, or remixing motifs, rather than as a shortcut to bypass learning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIf you\u2019re studying music for three years and just letting AI do the work, you’re not building real skills. And when the AI fails or evolves, you\u2019ll be left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

This approach links with a 2025 study in Arts Education Policy Review<\/a>, which recommends integrating generative AI into music curricula through four key pillars:<\/p>\n\n\n\n