AI Meets the Playlist Curators
AI DJs vs. the Human Tastemakers
The question of whether an AI DJ is better than a human for creating music playlists depends on several factors, including the context, the audience's preferences, and the specific capabilities of the AI in question. A hybrid approach, where AI assists human DJs by providing data-driven insights, could also be an optimal solution.
But the story is just getting started.
The resistance of curators to AI generated playlists stems mainly from their belief that AI cannot replicate the human touch. They contend that AI, with its reliance on data, may overlook nuances that human curators value, such as making narratives through song choices or recognizing emerging trends and underground movements. This concern highlights fears that AI’s role in playlist curation could diminish the importance of human expertise and creativity in the music industry.
But are curators truly resistant, or could they be open to integrating AI to enhance their capabilities? Are there ways AI could complement rather than replace the human elements of curation?
Once upon a time, radio was the place to go to discover new music. The station’s tastemakers – normally the DJ host themselves – found and played new music, making and breaking listeners’ next big thing.
Then music streaming changed everything. Playlists became the new radio with huge, on-demand offerings regularly updated by independent tastemakers and service’s own curators. They also changed the way we listen. Listeners weren’t just discovering their music from playlists, but treating it as their primary method of music consumption – detracting from albums.
If I can launch an album onto Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, iTunes, and the rest, so can you. Here are all the ways that AI tools did and did not help.