Ronnie Wood says “we’re losing the essence of the heartbeat” of music through technology
Ronnie Wood has said the “essence” of music is being lost due to the increasing use of technology.
During a launch event for the new book Words Of Love – which celebrates the life of Buddy Holly, and whose cover artwork was created by Wood – the Rolling Stones guitarist shared his thoughts on the current state of the industry.
Wood, who participated in the Q&A alongside Yungblud and The Who‘s Roger Daltrey, told those in attendance about his concerns over the growing reliance on tech, such as AI, in creating music.
“We were throwing shit at the wall and some of it stuck,” the legendary musician explained (via The Standard). “There’s something about the technology… I feel personally, we’re losing the essence of the heartbeat.
“Maybe it’s because I’m older, but there’s not much new music.”
Yungblud commented: “I think rock music has been so convoluted because we got to be forced and twisted for a mainstream audience to turn the guitar down.
“Modern music’s been in a strange place, but it’s exciting because it’s really, I feel it’s very democratic again.”
He went on: “For the past four years a lot of majors [labels] have been able to control what we’ve been placed in front of us, but we know apps like TikTok, Instagram and everything like that… I really find that people can provide authenticity again directly.
“If you have a story to tell, you can tell it and tell it to the world. You don’t have to go through seven steps.
“The balance has never changed. I think that’s what’s really cool about how rock music at the minute, and modern rock and roll music, I really feel like it’s finding its bounce back, and it’s becoming hysterical again and it’s exciting. It’s becoming younger again. That’s really cool.”
In 2023, Wood’s bandmate Keith Richards claimed that an AI-powered hologram concert of The Rolling Stones was “bound to happen” at some point. “Do I want it? Now, that’s another thing,” he added. “But I don’t know if I want to hang around that long enough, man. But at the same time, it won’t be up to me, will it?”
Richards also said that using AI in music was like “toy town”. He explained: “AI is like anything else. It can either be a tool, or it can be a toy.”
Last month, Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page hit out at the UK government over its AI copyright plan, and the impact this would have on music and the arts.
Paul McCartney has also criticised the proposed changes, saying it would allow AI to rip off artists and result in a “loss of creativity”.
In February, over 1,000 artists including Damon Albarn, Kate Bush and Annie Lennox released a silent album in protest of planned changes to copyright AI laws by the UK government.
The impact of rising AI usage in the music industry is already becoming prominent. A recent new study warned that people working in music were likely to lose a quarter of their income to Artificial Intelligence over the next four years.
In other news, Celine Dion has warned fans against “fake” AI-generated songs that are circulating online.
Meanwhile, Yungblud returned with an epic new single called ‘Hello Heaven, Hello’ last month. He then debuted three more new tracks – ‘Lovesick Lullaby’, ‘Zombie’ and ‘Ghosts’ – during an intimate gig in London.
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Tom Skinner
NME
