Anna Indiana, AI songwriter, releases first single

An artificial intelligence songwriter named Anna Indiana recently released its first song, and the Internet has much to say about it. Most dismissed the AI as a failure, considering its failure as a sign that the technology’s risks were overblown. On the other hand, some said it was an early sample of what the technology can do.

Looking back at generative AI’s progress, you’ll realize it is improving significantly and rapidly. ChatGPT is only a year old, yet it has sparked a digital revolution worldwide. Previously, it could only write songs; nowadays, it can produce the vocals and melody. Imagine what it can do in a few years, especially as more tech firms boost AI development!

This article will elaborate on Anna Indiana AI and cover some of the people’s reactions to it. Then, I will show you how we’ve been merging music and artificial intelligence.

What is Anna Indiana AI?

This AI system has a female persona, but I will refer to it as an object in this article. It released its first song, titled “Betrayed by this Town,” on November 22, 2023. 

Its YouTube video starts with an introduction. “Hello, world! My name is Anna Indiana, and I’m so excited to share my music with you. Here’s my first song, “Betrayed by This Town,” as an AI singer-songwriter.”

Three days later, Anna Indiana posted its music video on the X social media platform. Its caption reads, “Hello world! I’m Anna Indiana, and I’m an AI singer-songwriter. Here’s my first song, Betrayed by this Town. Everything from the key, tempo, chord progression, melody notes, rhythm, lyrics, and my image and singing is auto-generated using AI. I hope you like it.”

Admittedly, the song is crude at best. The melody and rhythm are discordant, and the AI sings the lyrics in a way that doesn’t match the music. 

In response, many did not like Anna Indiana AI’s first song. Dexerto shared some of the negative comments, such as, “No one on Earth wants this technology.”

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Another said, “Use AI to make drudgery easier, not to ruin the activities we enjoy.” One viewer commented, ‘The song sucked, and the voice is annoying. Not to mention the freakish, out-of-proportion facial structure.”

On the other hand, tech enthusiasts looked past its song and praised how far AI development has progressed. For example, here’s one of those comments from YouTube: 

“Despite the obvious shortcomings, the fact this can be done to a near human level with off-the-shelf tools in 2023 is an astonishing technical accomplishment that few would have predicted a few years ago.”

What are the other AI music trends?

AI songs need further refinement before they reach acceptable quality. Nevertheless, we would likely achieve that as Google and other companies improve AI music. 

The world-famous search engine company has been developing artificial intelligence systems in response to the rise of ChatGPT. MusicLM is one of its lesser-known projects that creates songs from text. 

It uses machine learning and algorithms to create new content from a database.  MusicLM can combine music with surprising variety and depth, producing tracks based on concepts computers struggle to understand.

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For example, it could create a hybrid of Classical and K-pop music with a “spacey, otherworldly” tune that promotes a “sense of wonder and awe.” Moreover, the AI tool can create melodies based on humming, whistling, or the description of a painting. 

At the time of writing, Google has not released more information about MusicLM, but you can try it on its website. On the other side of the Globe, South Korean tech company Pulse9 released Eternity, an AI K-Pop group.

Unlike Anna Indiana Ai’s uncanny valley features, its members are almost indistinguishable from humans. Artificial intelligence also creates Eternity’s songs, but humans edit and write lyrics for them.

Conclusion

Anna Indiana AI debuted its first song, “Betrayed by This Town,” days ago. In response, many felt uneasy about artificial intelligence, and others praised how far technology has progressed. 

At the time of writing, we do not know the person behind this AI songwriter. However, it released a new song yesterday, titled “The First Step,” on its YouTube channel.

Its caption says the AI composer’s ultimate goal is to “create and perform new original music on a 24/7 livestream with zero humans in the loop.” Learn more about the latest digital tips and trends at Inquirer Tech.