The Most Valuable Creative Skill Is Knowing What to Reject
The biggest advantage in music today has nothing to do with AI. It has nothing to do with better software. It has nothing to do with faster production. The biggest advantage is knowing what to reject. We’re living in an era where ideas are abundant. Lyrics are abundant. Melodies are abundant. Content is abundant. Everybody […]
What an AI-Generated Lyric Taught Me About Creativity
A while ago, I decided to run a simple experiment. I generated a lyric using AI. Then I put it aside. A few days later, I read it again as if someone else had written it. My first reaction surprised me. It wasn’t terrible. It wasn’t brilliant either. It was something far more dangerous. It […]
The Most Honest Feedback I Ever Received About My Music
Years ago, I shared a song I was genuinely proud of. I thought the lyric was clever. I thought the message was clear. I thought people would immediately understand what I was trying to communicate. One listener gave me feedback I’ll never forget. They said: “I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t feel anything.” […]
The Lyric I Couldn’t Stop Editing
I once spent more time rewriting two lines than I spent writing the rest of the song. Not the chorus. Not the hook. Two lines. The frustrating part was that they weren’t bad. They made sense. They rhymed. They communicated exactly what I wanted to say. And yet every time I sang them, something felt […]
Why Emotion Matters More Than Technology in Songwriting
Every few years, the music industry becomes obsessed with a new technology. A new instrument. A new recording technique. A new software platform. A new way of producing sound. Today, the conversation revolves around artificial intelligence. Can AI write songs? Can it generate lyrics? Can it compose melodies? Can it replace songwriters? These questions dominate […]
The Quality Problem in Music Existed Long Before AI
The most dangerous thing AI has done to songwriting isn’t what people think. It hasn’t stolen jobs. It hasn’t destroyed creativity. It hasn’t killed originality. It’s lowered our standards. A lot of writers now confuse completion with quality. A song gets generated. The verses rhyme. The chorus repeats. The structure looks right. And suddenly people […]
AI Is Not Ruining Music. Bad Taste Is.
AI is not ruining music. Bad taste is. I’ve seen people blame AI for everything from weak lyrics to generic melodies. That’s convenient. Because it shifts responsibility away from the creator. Let’s be honest. Most forgettable songs were not written by AI. They were written by people. Long before ChatGPT existed, radio stations were already […]