Something will change but exactly what will it be?
AI tools which allow to create songs will allow people, who so far were not capable of making their own music, to do so. Let’s not argue whether it can be called “their own”.
We had a similiar discussion already two times in the past few decades. First time was when sampling got introduced. This was the first time that people who created a song did not have to create the music or the singing itself but could rather assemble bits and pieces of things that others have done before. There was quite an outcry from “real” musicians and a discussion about copyright.
The second instance was the DAW + plugin revolution. Now even more people were able to create musical pieces as prices for necessary equipment dropped significantly. Add to it that DAWs can help people create music that they couldn’t play themselves or where they would not have access to peole who could. There was and still is quite a discussion about how the quality of music went downhill. At the same time we have the rise of the internet so not only the creation of music but also the publishing became easier and more affordable than ever.
So, now it is going to be the likes of Suno, which will allow even more people to create musical pieces.
We have already seen already during the DAW + plugin + internet revolution that, since many people can make and publish music, the amount of musical pieces created by far exceeded the demand of listening to music by the consumers. And also the willigness of the consumers to browse the whole catalogue to find music that they like.
It could be that people will start to simply task AI music generators to create pieces for the mood that they would like to listen to, rather than looking for already existing music. E.g. music for relaxing, esoteric music, music for meditation.
I can also foresee that people who create music for the non-music industry (elevator music, music for supermarkets, music for background of video training modules, etc.) will see a drastic decline in income.
What about traditional DAWs like Cubase? These programs will serve two kinds of people. Professionals that can do what no AI music generator can do (or in other words: people who outperform the abilities of AI music generators for the professional market). And enthusiasts, who are making music for their own piece of mind. Who embrace the creative process.
Speaking about professionals: They will utilize AI music tools for being able to meet deadlines, to be able to meet increasing demands by their clients. It’s a “whatever it takes” mentality.
I think a lot less money will be earned by the average musician. Less people will be able to make a living from making music. However, this trend already started before the advent of AI music generators. Why is it that you can see many great people giving tipps on platforms like YouTube on how to make music? They are already aiming at the enthusiasts, that I mentioned above.
There will be a place for both. Pure AI music generators and non-AI music software and hardware. Actually, it won’t be binary. There will be products being a mixture of both to varying degrees.
The above is all my opinion only. I don’t really claim everything to happen as I describe it.