AI-lands in the Stream
Sorry, but not even Dolly Parton is sacred amid the encroachment of AI into art.
Holly Herndon, an avant garde pop musician, has released a cover of Dolly Parton's beloved and frequently covered hit single, "Jolene." Except it's not really Herndon singing, but her digital deepfake twin known as Holly+.
The music video features a 3D avatar of Holly+ frolicking in what looks like a decaying digital world.
And honestly, it's not bad — dare we say, almost kind of good? Herndon's rendition croons with a big, round sound, soaked in reverb and backed by a bouncy, acoustic riff and a chorus of plaintive wailing. And she has a nice voice. Or, well, Holly+ does. Maybe predictably indie-folk, but it's certainly an effective demonstration of AI with a hint of creative flair, or at least effective curation.
Checking the Boxes
But the performance is also a little unsettling. For one, the giant inhales between verses are too long to be real and are almost cajolingly dramatic. The vocals themselves are strangely even and, despite the somber tone affected by the AI, lack Parton's iconic vulnerability.
Overall, it feels like the AI is simply checking the boxes of what makes a good, swooning cover after listening to Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah" a million times — which, to be fair, is a pretty good starting point.
Still, it'd be remiss to downplay what Herndon has managed to pull off here, and the criticisms mostly reflect the AI's limited capabilities more than her chops as a musician. The AI's seams are likely intentional, if her previous work is anything to go off of.
Either way, if you didn't know you were listening to an AI from the get-go, you'd probably be fooled. And that alone is striking.
The Digital Self
Despite AI's usually ominous implications for art, Herndon views her experiment as a "way for artists to take control of their digital selves," according to a statement on her website.
"Vocal deepfakes are here to stay," Herndon was quoted saying. "A balance needs to be found between protecting artists, and encouraging people to experiment with a new and exciting technology."
Whether Herndon's views are fatalistic or prudently pragmatic remains to be seen. But even if her intentions are meant to be good for artists, it's still worrying that an AI could pull off such a convincing performance.
More on AI music: AI That Generates Music from Prompts Should Probably Scare Musicians
The post This Deepfake AI Singing Dolly Parton's "Jolene" Is Worryingly Good appeared first on Futurism.
Read more here:
This Deepfake AI Singing Dolly Parton's "Jolene" Is Worryingly Good
- Learning to Live Sustainably on the Red Planet: Habitat Mars - Universe Today - July 3rd, 2020 [July 3rd, 2020]
- NASA, China and the UAE are scheduled to send missions to Mars in July | TheHill - The Hill - July 12th, 2020 [July 12th, 2020]
- A Look Into The Wild Economy Of Tabletop Board Game Funding - NPR - July 12th, 2020 [July 12th, 2020]
- Adventure Time: Distant Lands Premiere BMO the Hero - Show Snob - July 14th, 2020 [July 14th, 2020]
- Terraforming Mars on the App Store - July 23rd, 2020 [July 23rd, 2020]
- China successfully launches its first space mission that will attempt to land on Mars - Explica - July 24th, 2020 [July 24th, 2020]
- Perseverance Rover Launches on July 30, Here's How to Watch - autoevolution - July 27th, 2020 [July 27th, 2020]
- The Expanse Season 5: Cast, Plot, Release And Everything You Want To Know! - World Top Trend - July 28th, 2020 [July 28th, 2020]
- Alien Life Dwelling Beneath the Surface of Mars? New Theory Emerges - Webby Feed - July 29th, 2020 [July 29th, 2020]
- Bottom Line: Quarterstaff Games Stays Alive for the Next Level of the Pandemic - Seven Days - July 31st, 2020 [July 31st, 2020]
- Mars: Oodles of facts, figures and fun questions about the Red Planet - BBC Focus Magazine - August 2nd, 2020 [August 2nd, 2020]
- Pandemic Legacy, the Board-Game Series for the Age of the Coronavirus - The New Yorker - August 2nd, 2020 [August 2nd, 2020]
- Conquer the solar system in the upcoming game Solar Expanse . Drop asteroids, terraform, and plan rocket flights to eventually explore the entire... - August 4th, 2020 [August 4th, 2020]
- NASAs Curiosity Rover Reaches an Impressive Milestone During its Mars Mission - Webby Feed - August 8th, 2020 [August 8th, 2020]
- Terraforming of Mars - Wikipedia - August 9th, 2020 [August 9th, 2020]
- Mars covered in oceans: what terraformation on the Red Planet might look like - ZME Science - August 10th, 2020 [August 10th, 2020]
- Cool! Heres how Venus would look as a water world - EarthSky - September 6th, 2020 [September 6th, 2020]
- Longtime Literature Professor, Noted Poet Begins Next Chapter with Retirement - University of Texas at Dallas - September 6th, 2020 [September 6th, 2020]
- Don't ignore Venus Earth's twin hides surprising opportunities (op-ed) - Space.com - September 6th, 2020 [September 6th, 2020]
- Destination Red Planet: For space buffs, this summer has brought multiple Mars bound space launches - The Times of India Blog - September 6th, 2020 [September 6th, 2020]
- We asked Kim Stanley Robinson: Can science fiction save us? - TheWestNews - October 28th, 2020 [October 28th, 2020]
- We are proud and excited to announce that Terraformers is now part of the Goblinz line up! - Gamasutra - October 28th, 2020 [October 28th, 2020]
- The Expanse Season 4 Recap: Ilus, the Ring Gates and the Cliffhanger Ending - Den of Geek - December 5th, 2020 [December 5th, 2020]
- Kim Stanley Robinson: The Science Fiction of Right Now - Highsnobiety - December 5th, 2020 [December 5th, 2020]
- 9 of the best board games to play for fans of science and tech - New Scientist - December 5th, 2020 [December 5th, 2020]
- All of the best Mac and iOS Christmas app deals - 9to5Toys - December 28th, 2020 [December 28th, 2020]
- Elon Musk Terraforming Mars: He Says We Need 'Glass Domes ... - December 27th, 2021 [December 27th, 2021]
- Space-themed board game Terraforming Mars and its ... - December 27th, 2021 [December 27th, 2021]
- Why Earth is habitable but Venus looks like hell - Big Think - December 27th, 2021 [December 27th, 2021]
- Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition Review - Just Push Start - January 11th, 2022 [January 11th, 2022]
- Was Voltaire the First Sci-Fi Author? - WIRED - January 11th, 2022 [January 11th, 2022]
- Terraforming - Stellaris Wiki - April 28th, 2022 [April 28th, 2022]
- Terraforming Mars (board game) - Wikipedia - April 28th, 2022 [April 28th, 2022]
- That "Research" About How Smartphones Are Causing Deformed Human Bodies Is SEO Spam, You Idiots - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Chinese Spaceplane Releases Mystery Object Into Orbit - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- AOC Says Her Twitter Account Broke After She Made Fun of Elon Musk - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Huge Drone Swarm to Form Giant Advertisement Over NYC Skyline - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Hackers Just Took Down One of the World's Most Advanced Telescopes - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Jeff Bezos' Housekeeper Says She Had to Climb Out the Window to Use the Bathroom - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- China Plans to Send Monkeys to Space Station to Have Sex With Each Other - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- US Gov to Crack Down on "Bossware" That Spies On Employees' Computers - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Cats May Be Tampering With Crime Scenes, Scientists Say - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Meeting With Advertisers, Begging Them Not to Leave Twitter - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Scientists Found a Way to Control How High Mice Got on Cocaine - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Scientists Spot "Stripped, Pulsating Core" of Star Caused By Horrific Accident - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Scientists Use Actual Lunar Soil Sample to Create Rocket Fuel - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- NASA Sets Launch Date for Mission to $10 Quintillion Asteroid - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Twitter Working on Plan to Charge Users to Watch Videos - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Greta Thunberg Says UN Climate Conference Is a Scam and She's Not Attending - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- There's Something Strange About How These Stars Are Moving, Scientists Say - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Manslaughter Case Has a Strange Twist: Tesla That Killed Couple Was on Autopilot - November 4th, 2022 [November 4th, 2022]
- Tesla Reportedly Canceling Solar Roof Installations Across the Country - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- A Tesla Executive Under Investigation Is Now Working at SpaceX for Some Reason - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Might Get Thrashed by Lawsuit From Heavy Metal Drummer - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Unexploded Shell Removed From Soldier's Chest by Surgeons Wearing Body Armor - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Chinese Space Debris Crashes Down in the Philippines - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Divers Discover Fragment of Challenger Space Shuttle Under Ocean - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- NASA Disputes Calling Its Inflatable Heat Shield a "Bouncy Castle" - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Scientists Reproduce Fascinating, Powerful Material Found in Meteorite - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Says That Under His Brilliant New Management, Twitter May Go Out of Business - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Divers Growing Veggies in Underwater Greenhouses - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Tesla Issues Software Patch So That Its Cars Don't Lose Power Steering on Potholes - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- NASA Releases Hubble Images of Star Right as It Explodes - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Furious Fire Ants "Rain Down" on Hawaiian Residents and Bite Them in their Sleep - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- NASA Inspecting Moon Rocket for Damage From Hurricane Nicole - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- NASA Fixes Months-Long Issue With James Webb Telescope - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Amazing Video Shows What the ISS Would Look Like If It Flew at the Height of a Jetplane - November 12th, 2022 [November 12th, 2022]
- Amazing Map Lets You Scroll Through the Entire Known Universe - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- So Many People Are Using a Diabetes Drug for Weight Loss That Actual Diabetics Are Having Trouble Getting It - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Behind the Lawsuit Against Celebs Who Shilled FTX Before Its Spectacular Meltdown - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Twitter Claims Video of Moon Rocket Launch Is Revenge Porn - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Locks Twitter Employees Out Office, Then Asks Them to Meet Him on the 10th Floor - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Experts Excoriate NASA Report Claiming James Webb Wasn't Homophobic - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Ticketmaster May Have Finally Met Its Match: Furious Swifties - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- NASA Tells Astronauts That Tweeting Isn't As Important as Staying Alive - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- NASA Orders Press Not to Photograph Launch Site After Moon Mission Takes Off - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Experts Baffled by Why NASA’s “Red Crew” Wear Blue Shirts - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Panicked Elon Musk Reportedly Begging Engineers Not to Leave - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- NASA Drops Stunning New James Webb Image of a Star Being Born - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]
- Celebrities' Bored Apes Are Hilariously Worthless Now - November 20th, 2022 [November 20th, 2022]