Pete Townshend wants to use AI to finish unreleased songs
The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has revealed he hopes to use artificial intelligence technology to finish old and unreleased songs in his vault.
Townshend made the admission during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on November 12th, as he reflected on The Who’s recent farewell tour, his 60-year career, and what lies ahead in the future.
In August, Townshend revealed that he had around 140 songs in his vaults that he’s made over the years that are “ready to go”, and also stressed, “I want to continue to be creative. I’ve got songs in all kinds of development.”
This subject was also addressed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. “I’ve got about 350, 450 pieces of music. A lot of it is probably terrible,” he honestly replied, when asked about how much music he has stored away in his vaults.
However, Townshend has yet to listen to everything that he has stored away, admitting, “I’ve managed to wade through about half of it.”
Then, Townshend expressed his interest in AI, adding, “I don’t know what to do with it… I’m also quite interested in AI. I’m quite interested in getting some of my old songs that didn’t quite work because I didn’t quite get them right first time round, and put them up on Suno or some AI music machine and seeing what it can make of it. It might be some hits.”
Townshend has previously discussed AI before, telling The Times in March, “If I told AI, ‘Write a load of Pete Townshend songs like he used to in 1973,’ a lot of Who fans would be really pleased.”
While there is a notable difference between using AI technology to clean up old recordings, like The Beatles did with their final song, ‘Now and Then’, and AI music, the latter is becoming more frequent.
Recently, AI-artist Xamoa Monet landed on Billboard Adult R&B Airplay chart with their song ‘How Was I Supposed to Know?’, and another AI-artist, Breaking Rust, is currently top of Billboard’s Country Digital Song Sales chart with ‘Walk the Walk’.
It comes after Key Production Group, a music manufacturer, recently discovered that 21 per cent of people would buy a physical release of an AI artist following a survey of more than 2,000 participants.
Neil Gibbons, COO of Key Production Group, said in a statement shared with Far Out of the study, “As platforms like Spotify set clearer rules around AI in music, listeners appear to be open to it. According to our research, one in five would buy a physical release from an AI artist, and over a quarter are comfortable with AI-curated playlists. People are curious about AI’s role, as long as it’s used responsibly and human artists are protected, credited, and fairly treated. Even if AI may reshape music, physical formats remain popular, offering a deeper connection to both human and AI creativity.”
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.