Derek Thompson

Okay, so what do we make of these songs? They're impressive in their own way. They certainly resemble real songs. I think they're funny enough that I absolutely did send them to Dallas Mavericks fans in my life. But they're more impressive as a fancy parlor trick than as great music. They're a bit like an actor who's magnificent at impersonations, but far from virtuosic at actually acting.

Okay, so what do we make of these songs? They're impressive in their own way. They certainly resemble real songs. I think they're funny enough that I absolutely did send them to Dallas Mavericks fans in my life. But they're more impressive as a fancy parlor trick than as great music. They're a bit like an actor who's magnificent at impersonations, but far from virtuosic at actually acting.

Okay, so what do we make of these songs? They're impressive in their own way. They certainly resemble real songs. I think they're funny enough that I absolutely did send them to Dallas Mavericks fans in my life. But they're more impressive as a fancy parlor trick than as great music. They're a bit like an actor who's magnificent at impersonations, but far from virtuosic at actually acting.

Like I'm not putting these songs on any sincere playlist. And so while I've been fascinated by these music AI tools, I wasn't sure I knew exactly what to say about them. Now that was until several weeks ago when I heard the film, TV, and podcast composer Mark Henry Phillips describe his experience with AI music tools on WNYC's On the Media.

Like I'm not putting these songs on any sincere playlist. And so while I've been fascinated by these music AI tools, I wasn't sure I knew exactly what to say about them. Now that was until several weeks ago when I heard the film, TV, and podcast composer Mark Henry Phillips describe his experience with AI music tools on WNYC's On the Media.

Like I'm not putting these songs on any sincere playlist. And so while I've been fascinated by these music AI tools, I wasn't sure I knew exactly what to say about them. Now that was until several weeks ago when I heard the film, TV, and podcast composer Mark Henry Phillips describe his experience with AI music tools on WNYC's On the Media.

Phillips explained how a sophisticated user of these tools could eliminate much of the composition work that professional musicians today rely on to make ends meet. What struck me as a funny game is to Phillips a dead serious matter. the difference between work and disemployment. Mark is today's guest.

Phillips explained how a sophisticated user of these tools could eliminate much of the composition work that professional musicians today rely on to make ends meet. What struck me as a funny game is to Phillips a dead serious matter. the difference between work and disemployment. Mark is today's guest.

Phillips explained how a sophisticated user of these tools could eliminate much of the composition work that professional musicians today rely on to make ends meet. What struck me as a funny game is to Phillips a dead serious matter. the difference between work and disemployment. Mark is today's guest.

We talk about the job of modern music composition, why some AI tools are eerily good at certain aspects of the job. We talk about copyright law and the ethics of creative ownership. But above all, Mark gets my brain worrying about the very nature of creativity, how great new ideas like songs come to be in the first place.

We talk about the job of modern music composition, why some AI tools are eerily good at certain aspects of the job. We talk about copyright law and the ethics of creative ownership. But above all, Mark gets my brain worrying about the very nature of creativity, how great new ideas like songs come to be in the first place.

We talk about the job of modern music composition, why some AI tools are eerily good at certain aspects of the job. We talk about copyright law and the ethics of creative ownership. But above all, Mark gets my brain worrying about the very nature of creativity, how great new ideas like songs come to be in the first place.

The line between stealing and riffing and interpolating in artistic history has always been blurry. Picasso famously said, good artists copy, great artists steal. And this is not just a theoretical fact. Many of my favorite musicians were famous borrowers.

The line between stealing and riffing and interpolating in artistic history has always been blurry. Picasso famously said, good artists copy, great artists steal. And this is not just a theoretical fact. Many of my favorite musicians were famous borrowers.

The line between stealing and riffing and interpolating in artistic history has always been blurry. Picasso famously said, good artists copy, great artists steal. And this is not just a theoretical fact. Many of my favorite musicians were famous borrowers.

Some of Led Zeppelin's most famous songs, Days and Confused, Whole Lotta Love, were such obvious lifts that after years of court cases, the band agreed to add the plaintiff's name to the song credits. But analogies to music and art history fall short to capture the weirdness of this moment.

Some of Led Zeppelin's most famous songs, Days and Confused, Whole Lotta Love, were such obvious lifts that after years of court cases, the band agreed to add the plaintiff's name to the song credits. But analogies to music and art history fall short to capture the weirdness of this moment.

Some of Led Zeppelin's most famous songs, Days and Confused, Whole Lotta Love, were such obvious lifts that after years of court cases, the band agreed to add the plaintiff's name to the song credits. But analogies to music and art history fall short to capture the weirdness of this moment.

Neither Picasso nor Jimmy Page had access to an external technology whose deliberate function was to slurp up musical elements from millions of songs, store their essence in silicon memory, and serve them up in a kind of synthetic stir fry on an order-by-order basis. Musicians have been writing music with partners for decades, even centuries.

Neither Picasso nor Jimmy Page had access to an external technology whose deliberate function was to slurp up musical elements from millions of songs, store their essence in silicon memory, and serve them up in a kind of synthetic stir fry on an order-by-order basis. Musicians have been writing music with partners for decades, even centuries.