‘It’s not enjoyable to make music now’: AI music platform CEO is under fire for going after human creativity

The CEO of AI music platform Suno has claimed “it’s not really enjoyable to make music now.” As you can imagine, actual musicians have some thoughts.

During a podcast interview with 20VC with Harry Stebbings posted to YouTube earlier this month, Mikey Shulman explained that he and the other founders of Suno, the AI-based generative music platform, sought to make music creation accessible to the many, rather than easier for the few.

“It’s not really enjoyable to make music now,” the tech entrepreneur says in a clip that has since racked up 4.2 million views on X. “It takes a lot of time, it takes a lot of practice, you have to get really good at an instrument or really good at a piece of production software. I think the majority of people don’t enjoy the majority of time they spend making music.”

“It’s not really enjoyable to make music now… it takes a lot of time, it takes a lot of practice, you have to get really good at an instrument or really good at a piece of production software. I think the majority of people don’t enjoy the majority of time they spend making… pic.twitter.com/zkv73Bhmi9

Here, the interviewer attempts to compare the creative process to running: While it might not be enjoyable at first, once the necessary muscles are built up, people often fall in love with it. Shulman counters that most people stop running before this can happen. Rather than pouring time and effort into practicing and honing their craft, generative AI platforms like Suno allow anyone to produce full songs from just a few prompts, bypassing the traditional barriers for entry entirely.

AI’s role in music has been subject to much scrutiny in recent months, with ongoing ethical debates about copyright and the originality of AI-generated music. “He’s everyone who supports AI in a nutshell,” wrote one unimpressed X user in response to the clip. “They’re the type who have always been envious of those with commitment and talent and love that now they don’t need to “waste time” perfecting and nourishing a craft. They miss the whole point and just want a “I win” button in life.”

Shulman addressed the backlash in a separate X post. “Watching myself on video always makes me cringe, but doubly so when I’ve expressed an idea badly,” he wrote. He then clarifies that, as a musician himself, his intention wasn’t to undermine the creative process or the importance of practice. Instead, he aimed to appeal to those who may miss out on the joy of making music because they drop out before reaching a level where they can truly enjoy it or struggle to keep up with regular practice.

“It makes me feel insane that the idea underpinning every pitch for AI is that we all hate everything we do,” wrote another X user. “We don’t just hate our jobs, but we hate our hobbies, we hate talking to other people, we hate expending any kind of effort. It’s so nasty.”

As the age-old adage goes: “Nothing worth having comes easy”.