BILLY CORGAN: 'I Patently Refuse To Use A.I. In My Music Creation'

In a new interview with the And The Writer Is... podcast, SMASHING PUMPKINS leader Billy Corgan spoke about how artificial intelligence (A.I.) music generators are becoming surprisingly advanced, with programs such as Suno, Udio and other generative audio systems now able to create songs that sound remarkably close to human-made music. He said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "You didn't ask me, but I'm gonna make a declaratory statement. I refuse, refuse, patently refuse to use A.I. in my music creation. Because, to me, it's a deal with the devil. Simple. Whether it's the Promethean fire myth or whatever, to me you're literally leaning into the thing that will destroy you. Period. So that's why I'm not gonna mess with it, because the pressure, the inspiration, the, the soul searching, the 'I'm not sure I got anything else to say', that's all part of the journey that a songwriter needs to go to. Now, if it was the guy in my band or somebody I met through my friend Shooter Jennings or whatever, and we're writing songs together, that's a real person with real feelings and real blood coursing through their veins. And maybe someday we're gonna argue about a publishing split. But if we're arguing, it means there's something of value that we're arguing over. If my new buddy, my new running buddy, is pick your app or app to still be made, that shit's never gonna end. I'm saying it's good that a songwriter has a doubt, it's good that a songwriter's not sure they have anything left to say, it's good that a songwriter has to think of a new chord that they haven't thought of. That's where the magic comes from, and until that is proven otherwise, I'm sticking with the game I'm in."

Billy added: "Maybe people will listen to me and continue to listen to me into my old age because they know it's coming from me. That actually might be part of the sale."

Elaborating on his previous comment that using A.I. during the songwriting process is making "a deal with the devil", Billy said: "I'm saying I'm making a bigger argument. We, us, we're flirting with the thing that will destroy us as a economy, as a business, as a movement. We're asking to be eradicated. We're giving them our information. They already have all our other information. God knows what the labels are doing. Am I gonna get a check someday for 62 cents? Is that coming? But I'm saying, on a spiritual level to lean into it is to ask to be wiped out. You're asking to be wiped out."

Regarding the long-term impact of A.I. on the music-creation process, Billy said: "I think the real fallow winter that's coming is you're gonna lose generations of songwriters.

"Over the last 20 years, we've seen the rise of the producer, the star producer, where the producer is almost more important, particularly like [pop producer] Max Martin, the producer-writer is more important than the artist, at least how the business animates itself," Corgan continued. "So now you're gonna see the rise of the guy who knows how to run the programs better than the other guy or girl. It'd be like Dr. Joe. Dr. Joe is the king of something, something, something. And he'll be branded and he'll have a sponsorship and he'll be doing commercials and 'you can be just like me. Look, I got a Benz in the driveway and I'm dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, because I'm just really good at knowing how to put this information together. I don't even know fucking music. I just know what I like.'"

"Every generation kind of does its 'Oh my God.' But let's face it, this shit's gonna wipe out a lot of people," Billy predicted. "This might be the most cataclysmic technological innovation in this town since the change from silence to talking pictures. A lot of people gonna lose their gig and there's gonna be a lot of new faces who are suddenly boy or girl wonder because they know how to press some fricking buttons."

Three years ago, Corgan told the "Zach Sang Show" that he believed A.I. would "change music forever". He explained: "Because once young artists figure out that they can use A.I. to game the system and write them a better song, they're not going to spend 10,000 hours in a basement like I did.

"Ultimately, art is about discernment," he continued. "Somebody was telling me the other day how a famous rap artist would work, they would bring in all these different people and they would pick the beat they were most attracted to. Now, let's change it to AI. 'Hey, A.I. Give me 50 beats from the 50 best rap songs of all time. Mmm, I like number 37.' That inspires me. Are they ripping it off? Not really. Because I did the same thing. I just did it analog. I listened to 10,000 songs — so what's the difference? So it will really be about those who can discern, even if it's A.I. presenting them with choices."

He also said A.I. would make it more difficult for organic artists to make themselves heard in an already oversaturated market.

"The problem with it is, if you're an organic artist like I am, it's going to be really hard to compete with a whole bunch of people who don't know how to write songs but have good discernment, can't sing but have Auto-Tune," he explained. "You think there's a lot of bad music coming out now, just wait."

Beyond founding and fronting THE SMASHING PUMPKINS, Billy stands out as a solo artist, producer, songwriter, poet, wrestling promoter, podcast host, and café owner. His solo catalog comprises "TheFutureEmbrace" (2005),"Aegea" (2014),"Ogilala" (2017) and, most recently, "Cotillions" (2019). In the studio, he has notably collaborated with everyone from Tony Iommi of BLACK SABBATH, Rick Ocasek, CHEAP TRICK, Ray Davies, NEW ORDER, Marianne Faithful, and SCORPIONS to KORN, PHANTOGRAM, THE VERONICAS and CODE ORANGE. He has also contributed music to soundtracks such as "Ransom", directed by Academy Award winner Ron Howard, "Stigmata" and "Spun", to name a few. He released his first poetry book, "Blinking With Fists", in 2004. A lifelong wrestling aficionado, he owns and serves as president of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) — home to a dynamic roster and bombastic pay-per-view spectacles. He notably owns Madame ZuZu's Tea House in Highland Park, where he often performs intimate surprise sets. Corgan also remains a staunch animal advocate who supports no-kill shelters such as PAWS Chicago. The Chicago native is constantly writing and recording new music.