Music Tectonics Machine Music, the Velvet Sundown, and Whale Pop Stars with Drew Thurlow
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Sep 16, 2025 Drew Thurlow, a former music executive and AI strategist, dives into the transformative role of AI in music. He discusses how AI democratizes creativity rather than threatens it, explores intriguing concepts like the Velvet Sundown—a playful take on AI-generated music—and highlights remarkable discoveries, such as whale songs gaining popularity. Drew also touches on the evolving landscape of copyright law and the practical implications of AI for fans and labels, all while giving a sneak peek into his upcoming book on this fascinating subject.
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AI Compresses The Production Chain
- AI further lowers barriers that DAWs and plugins already reduced for composing and recording.
- Generative instruments, lyric models, and AI mixing/mastering compress the traditional production value chain.
From Studio Sessions To DAW Democracy
- Drew recalls being a session musician when recording required studios and money.
- He uses that history to show how DAWs and AI democratize music creation today.
AI Tracks Aren't Dominating Streams
- Despite millions of AI-generated tracks, streaming data shows listeners overwhelmingly favor human-made music.
- Early research suggests generative AI currently captures only a tiny fraction of royalties and attention.
