John Oates Opens Up About Fears Over Artificial Intelligence: “It’s A Crazy, Scary World”

There is a natural fear and skepticism in the music industry ever since Randy Travis opened the floodgates for it. John Oates warns of what could happen if we let AI prominently reside in our creative worlds.

Speaking with Fox News Digital, he imagines the various possibilities that could happen if we allow artificial intelligence to root itself in our art. Look at what’s coming in with AI, the possibility that AI is going to be replacing songwriters and artists for that matter,” he emphasizes. “The idea that there could be a new… David Bowie album. AI could take David Bowie’s voice and extrapolate and sample his music for his entire career and write new David Bowie songs, and the record company could put it out.”

Furthermore, we run the risk of allowing AI music to alter the meaningful legacy of our icons. The dead can’t speak for themselves so we lose a measure of their expression in the process. But the untrained ear might not be able to even tell the difference. The musician continues, “A younger generation might not even know. They might not even know he’s dead for that matter. It’s a crazy future, and it’s a crazy, scary world that we’re kind of leaning toward. So there’s a lot going on and you have to pay attention.”

How Will John Oates Protect His Own Music?

Since he sees the danger in leaving his art and voice to chance, he’s working hard to preserve his work in Hall & Oates. He explains, “”I’ve been thinking about it for a few years now and working very hard to protect the intellectual property that is me personally, and Hall & Oates. It’s not easy. Lots of stumbling blocks along the way, but, yeah, very important to do that and, I’m very aware of it.”

Given the importance of intellectual property as creatives, it’s vital to protect their likeness and who can make money off of their work. If unattended, record labels and countless corporate entities will look to see how they can exploit a loophole or maximize their revenue through an artist’s work. Anything to capitalize off of you and increase their dollar.