Unlicensed deepfake tracks get the music industry’s goat – and rightly so. But it’s becoming very clear that the technology for creating a ‘voiceprint’ of an artist can also be used in positive ways, under their control.
The latest example is artist Lauv’s partnership with AI startup Hooky and K-Pop artist Kevin Woo. It involved creating a Korean-language version of his new single ‘Love U Like That’.
Woo translated the lyrics, re-cut the vocals then added a ‘Lauv AI effect’ to make his singing sound like Lauv. Cue a new version of the track that has been released, including a making-of video showing how it was done.
Besides being our favourite startup named after a low-slung Mancunian bassist, Hooky is the latest example of an AI music startup founded by an actual musician: producer, mixer and songwriter Jordan ‘DJ Swivel’ Young.
The pitch: “Voice AI technology, when it’s used legally, has the power to make multilingual albums a reality.”
There is also a fan-service element here: Hooky said that Lauv’s incentive to work on the project was to say thank you to his fans in South Korea, after playing a 15,000-capacity show there.
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