I've been really into mountain biking for the last year and a half. As a tech geek, I also love exploring new technologies, and lately, that has been generative AI.
When ChatGPT first came out, I used it to write a book, which I published on Amazon called Pocket Guide to Keeping Your Kids Safe Online: A Practical and Concise Handbook for Parents (available in paperback and Kindle: Amazon link).
I don’t usually listen to music while mountain biking, but I thought it would be fun to have biking themed songs. A loose inspiration for this idea came from an artist I follow, YTCracker, whose tech-savvy nerdcore hip-hop blends clever, internet-culture-driven lyrics with electronic beats and sharp wordplay.
Although I went for a different music style with this first album, I wanted lyrics that capture the feelings and experiences of mountain biking (which in some cases, are experiences of crashing or something going wrong like a flat tire!)
I’m no artist, of course. I played piano as a kid and have an ear for music, but I can’t sing or play instruments, and writing songs from scratch isn’t my thing either. Enter AI...
I don’t exactly remember how this started, but I watch a lot of videos about AI, and one mentioned a platform for creating music. I started experimenting with it, and it was surprisingly good! You can describe the style of music you want, provide lyrics, and it generates songs. Not all the creations were great, but once I found something I really liked, I saved it as a “profile” to create more songs with a similar style and voice.
Like with other generative AI, you have to kiss a lot of frogs before finding your prince. It took a lot of tweaking and attempts, but every once in a while, the platform produced something I really liked.
Next, I researched how to self-publish music and learned how to distribute it to platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and more. It was a fun experience learning this process.
I’m not sure how popular my album might get, but like other music artists, I can earn music royalties. Of course, I didn’t do this for the money (and honestly, I'll probably only earn pennies since I don't have a promoter or any marketing). But I love learning new things, and creating music is genuinely fun.
The bonus? Now I can listen to my own music on Spotify, which is just cool.
Do I feel weird calling myself a music producer when I used AI? Not at all. This is the future. Remember when people played real pianos and drums, and then synthesizers came along? Today, much of the music we enjoy is either entirely or partially crafted through digital methods.
I see AI as an extension of that. It’s an addition to the music industry, not a replacement for real-life artists. I’ve heard amazing music generated by AI—the technology has advanced so much that it’s often indistinguishable from traditionally created music. But - you can't go see your favorite "AI music artist" in person at a concert, so there's that 🙂
My music label is “MTB VIBES,” and this first album, Island Edition, is an uplifting reggae fusion with engaging mountain bike-related themes. I’m planning to create additional albums in different genres under this label.
If you want to check out the album or follow me on your favorite music platform, here’s the link:
