Jermaine Dupri knows talent when he hears it. The producer has worked with some of the most popular artists of the last few decades, including Mariah Carey and Usher. He's also a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, which is a testament to his musical versatility. It's for these reasons and more that Dupri is upset with the current state of the industry. During a recent interview with AllHipHop, the producer said that he was "disgusted" by the concept of the AI music generator Udio. In his estimation, the generator should be boycotted by real artists.
Udio is an AI music generator that allows users to create a song within 40 seconds. It does not require knowledge of musical scales or instruments. Dupri believes the low barrier for entry is an insult to those who have dedicated time to mastering their craft. "N***as that’s been playing music they whole life that take piano lessons, keyboard lessons, whatever, guitar lessons," he said. "We’re allowing a company of people that are probably not musicians to say, 'We making an app so everybody and anybody can make music and be a music virtuoso'." Furthermore, the producer points out that Udio could hurt the financial earnings of artists.
Jermaine Dupri Thinks Udio Will Hurt Music
Jermaine Dupri criticized former So So Def affiliate Chris Lyons for his involvement with Udio, and likened the generator to the lack of music regulation on the app TikTok. "I ain’t understood this for a long time," he admitted. "It’s starting to be more apparent now. It’s the same reason that [Universal Music Group CEO] Lucian [Grainge] pulled the plug on TikTok. That’s what I’m saying. I don’t understand why we keep allowing this s**t to happen." The resentment on Dupri's end largely stems from the fact that those pushing Udio are not part of the music business.
"Why do we keep having or keep allowing people from different backgrounds, people from different walks of life, come in our business?", he asked the AllHipHop interviewer. "You don’t do this to the NBA. They don’t do this to football. They don’t do this to no business because the business don’t allow this." Dupri's comments about AI could not have come at a better time. Fake AI diss tracks have run rampant in the last few weeks, especially in relation to the ongoing Drake and Kendrick Lamar feud. Dupri may have a point.
[Via]
