Labor Day - Manifesto (Mix Tape Edition)

EXCERPT #1 - "Music allows us to say the things we can’t in polite society, else we start feuds, fights . . . wars."

WHAT MUSIC IS

Mood. Meaning.

Music has existed for thousands of years.  It allows man to say what needs to be said when it can’t in any other way.  It is uniquely human - a critical commonality it shares with all other artistic endeavors. Music has two layers:

Mood: the sound, form, instrumentation; and

Meaning: what the song is trying to say and what it actually says to you - through the lyrics, genre, cultural context and your own interpretation.

This is how over time it came to be known that the devil controlled certain harmonies and that hands weren’t made just for holding.  Viennese aristocracies were sure that ballet and music simply didn’t mix - and that Mozart from time to time added too many notes.

Closer to today, Elvis’ hips weren’t simply physical, they hypnotized a generation. Dylan plugging in wasn’t just louder guitars, it was poet-as-rock-star.  Hendrix plugging in was just about louder guitars AND burning the house down. Grand Master Flash wasn’t worried about virtuosity but his staccato truth bombs eviscerated hypocrisy.   Madonna wasn’t just dance pop, she was sexuality-as-agency.

+ People.

Music has another layer: the musician.  They’re the wild card and they most assuredly are human with the accompanying limitless potential, hallmark imperfections and lived battle scars.

Some are undeniable forces of will - Elvis, John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Elvis, Tupac, Tay Tay.  Others are more fragile and it is in their struggle that we find deeper meaning in ours - Kate Bush, Brian Wilson, Adele, etc.  But, they are their music and there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to artists.  We want the human condition, in all forms, to play out in front of our very own eyes. That’s not just spectacle. It’s essential. It’s what modifies the mood. It deepens the meaning.  It is core to music’s value.

Or, at least that is how it’s been since the beginning.

--

EXCERPT #2 - "A descriptive prompt - no matter how compelling - is not sufficient to be anything other than an accomplice to musical homocide."

Humans Are The Secret Weapon - I Know, It Scares The Hell Out Of Me, Too

Music matters because it mirrors core truths, not because it manipulates or pretends to be something it’s not. Music is about reminders: we made it this far, we’re still alive, and this is how it really works. Music allows us to say the things we can’t in polite society, else we start feuds, fights . . . wars.

What happens if the core medium where we found and shared truth now becomes a place for something that isn’t even human?!

To be clear, this isn’t about AI as a tool.  An aid in human creativity.  That is all fair game.

We’re talking about AI as human replacement.  Yes, it’s happening.  10,000 AI songs are released every day on Spotify.

Perhaps we can get around strip mining all of human musical history (the AI database), but there is no getting around completely replacing humans in the creation process.  A descriptive prompt - no matter how compelling - is not sufficient to be anything other than an accomplice to musical homocide.

Here’s what we’ve learned in this manifesto -

Music is . . . Mood, Meaning and . . . People.

AI Music is, at best, one thing . . . Mood.

You see the problem?  Even if the listener can’t tell the difference between human and AI “music” we still have a problem, Houston!

Can AI provide meaning when it is merely performing a ventriloquist act aping the words of music’s legacy?

Can AI be a frontman with his whole life on the line and under his belt when there is no flesh and blood coursing through its veins?

AI can only be a tool and not a replacement - full stop.

We are at an inflection point and we are f!cking with one of the few things that matter. One of the few things that give life meaning.

We are not the input. We are not the output.  We are not the special ingredient.  We are the point.  The whole point.

[[More To Come - Some parts are polished, others still in progress. But together, they speak to what music is, what’s been lost, why it matters now and what the hell I'm going to do about it. Signups are at the front door.]]