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While some visual artists are trying to fight AI companies in court, other mainstream artists are quickly embracing the technology and using it to create modern designs in their aesthetic.
An example would be pop star The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, who earlier this week presented a new trailer to livestream his upcoming concert in São Paulo, Brazil, on YouTube on September 7. The broadcast utilized a list of cutting-edge AI-powered tools.
According to information posted on YouTube, the music video was directed by a Spanish visual artist Yza Vokucreated using a combination of still images generated by Midjourney and animations from Runway Gen-3, Luma Dream Machine, and Google’s Veo AI video generator — the latter of which is, for now, invite-only and only available to a compact group of creators selected by the search giant.
The visuals in the music video showcase The Weeknd’s signature yet phantasmagoric neon-gothic dim disco style, with monstrous faces, masks, fire, lightning, shadowy figures with burning heads, a car sinking underwater and a figure wading through it, a neon, disgusting grave, occultists in robes with hands reaching out from hell, meager trees, screaming faces, temples, and his own head making a brief appearance.
The Weeknd shared an AI-generated trailer on his social media accounts, fueling interest in the live stream.
On Xencouraged fans to “feast your eyes,” highlighting the unique visuals that set the tone for the upcoming performance.
Voku too he expressed his gratitude on Instagram, thanking The Weeknd and XO Records co-founder Lamar C. Taylor.
On LinkedIn, Matthieu Lorrain, Creative Director at Google DeepMind confirmed that the company helped create the film and called it “another exciting collaboration for our team as we continue to explore new creative territories with generative media.”
While it’s unclear whether generative AI will play a role in the live streaming itself, the trailer shows the potential of these tools in original media.
The trailer has already caught the attention of fans and technology enthusiasts who are curious to see what the full version of the show will look like.
The modern AI trailer shows off Washed Out’s AI-created music video (using OpenAI’s Sora) and Ye’s (formerly Kanye West’s) Vultures music videos, also created using Midjourney and Runway. Madonna concert visualizations and a musical film for Jared Leto’s band 30 Seconds to Mars AI tools were also used.
So clearly, while a group of artists are unhappy with the AI generation and are suing it for allegedly infringing copyright by training on their previous work without permission or compensation, other, wildly popular artists are seeing a exploit for the technology and are releasing modern projects built with it — despite, or perhaps because of, its controversial reputation.