The Machine in the Music: Can AI Ever Write a Truly Human Song?
Nothing has unsettled the songwriting community quite like the rise of artificial intelligence in music composition. While technology has always influenced sound, from the synthesiser to autotune, what we’re witnessing now is something entirely different.
AI isn’t just a tool to enhance human creativity; in some cases, it’s attempting to replace it. And that’s what has musicians worried.
A Machine Without a Soul
Artists like Nick Cave and Tina Arena have been vocal about their concerns, and it’s not hard to see why. Songwriting isn’t just about assembling words and melodies, it’s about distilling raw human emotion into something tangible, something universal. Cave, in particular, has famously dismissed AI-generated music as “a grotesque mockery of what it means to be human.”
He has a point. AI can analyse vast databases of existing songs, predict chord progressions, and even generate lyrics that, on paper, might pass for poetry. But what it lacks is the intangible, the heartbreak behind a blues ballad, the righteous fury of a punk anthem, the lived experience that seeps into every note. The best songs are often born from struggle, from vulnerability, from the things that make us uniquely human. Can an algorithm, no matter how sophisticated, ever truly understand grief, love, or rebellion?
The Threat to Songwriters
Beyond the philosophical debate, there’s a very real economic concern. If record labels and streaming services begin favouring AI-generated songs, cheaper to produce, quicker to create, where does that leave human songwriters? There’s already a crisis in the industry, with artists struggling to make a living from streaming royalties. If AI becomes a dominant force in songwriting, that financial squeeze could become unbearable.
Tina Arena has warned about the “commodification” of music, arguing that it risks reducing songwriting to a hollow, mass-produced product. If AI-generated songs flood the market, the danger isn’t just that songwriters will lose work, it’s that listeners will become desensitised to the emotional depth of music itself. We’ve already seen a similar phenomenon in other creative industries, automation in digital art and AI-written journalism has raised concerns about the loss of individuality and authenticity. If music follows this path, the risk is that songs become more about efficiency and engagement metrics than genuine artistic expression. A world where every song sounds eerily perfect, where melodies are mathematically optimised for virality but devoid of soul, that’s the dystopian future many musicians fear.
The Counterargument: AI as a Creative Tool
Of course, not everyone sees AI as an existential threat. Some argue that AI can serve as a co-writer rather than a replacement, offering new avenues for creativity. Just as drum machines didn’t kill drummers and synthesisers didn’t eliminate orchestras, proponents believe AI could be another instrument in the songwriter’s toolkit. However, while those technologies still required human creativity and interpretation, AI raises the question of whether it can operate independently, potentially diminishing the human role in the songwriting process altogether. Artists like Holly Herndon have experimented with AI in their compositions, using machine learning to push sonic boundaries rather than erase the human touch.
In this view, AI doesn’t have to be the enemy. But it does raise a fundamental question: Who controls the creative process? If AI-generated music becomes the industry standard, will we still have room for the messy, imperfect beauty of human made songs? Or will we find ourselves drowning in an endless stream of algorithmically fine-tuned, emotionally vacant hits?
The Future: A Crossroads for Music
One thing is clear: AI in songwriting isn’t going away. The industry is at a crossroads, and how we navigate it will determine the future of music as an art form. Will we embrace AI as a tool while safeguarding the irreplaceable role of human creativity? Or will we allow convenience and profit to strip music of its most essential quality, its soul?
For those of us who’ve spent our lives immersed in music, the answer is obvious. No algorithm, no matter how advanced, can replicate the fire in Johnny Cash’s voice, the sorrow in Billie Holiday’s phrasing, or the raw energy of a Nirvana riff. Music has always been, and must remain, a deeply human endeavour. To ensure this, artists, industry leaders, and listeners alike must advocate for protections that prioritise human creativity, whether through ethical AI regulations, fair compensation models, or fostering spaces where authentic songwriting continues to thrive. And if AI ever truly threatens that? Then it’s time for artists to do what they’ve always done best, fight back.
