The Beatles have earned the first nomination in history for a Grammy award for an AI-assisted song after the release of the celebrated band’s last tune, “Now and Then.”
At the end of 2023, the two remaining band mates, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, collaborated to release the song that features all four of the famed “Fab Four” band members even though two, John Lennon and George Harrison, had long since passed away. Now the song has earned a Grammy nomination, according to Billboard.
When it was first released late in 2023, rumors abound that AI was used to actually recreate Lennon’s voice, or Harrison’s guitar work, but it was later revealed that this was not the case. AI was only used to clean up old recordings.
NOW AND THEN. THE LAST BEATLES SONG. OUT 02.11.23.⁰
— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) October 26, 2023
'#NowAndThen' is the last @thebeatles song – written and sung by @johnlennon, developed and worked on by Paul, @GeorgeHarrison @ringostarrmusic, and now finally finished by Paul and Ringo over four decades later.
Pre-order… pic.twitter.com/HVGyIPnlgd
The song was cobbled together using an AI program called “stem separation” which allows operators to separate vocals or instruments from background noise. Using stem separation, the technicians were able to get a clear separation of John Lennon’s voice from a crude demo track he recorded years ago in his living room. Once Lennon’s singing was separated and cleaned up, McCartney and Starr added some prerecorded guitar licks by George Harrison, then added their own bits to the recording to complete it.
If the Beatles win a Grammy for the song, it will be the first song to win such an award after being developed using AI technology.
While the achievement with “Now and Then” was amazing for many, the use of AI is still a controversial one.
Prominent film directors including James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, and Tim Burton have all condemned or issued dire prognostications about AI.
AI also featured as one of the main concerns during the 2023 actor’s strike. The issue came up yet again this year when video game actors threatened a strike over the use of AI.
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