Yesterday, a historical publication may have just lost their credibility amongst a portion of their readers when they posted a photo to their Instagram page, tagging that they were a '#partner' with Producer.ai, a company that provides AI software to produce music.
The software aims to allow artists to have AI produce their music for them, rather than a real producer.
SPIN Magazine, established in 1985, posted a photo with the following caption to Instagram:
“You can make really beautiful art with this technology. You play it like you would play a physical instrument—only with prompts to craft and refine your sound.
Artists think of Producer.ai and its models as a new instrument that’s built for the musician in all of us. It’s a place to create the music you imagine with frontier AI models, advanced controls, unlimited generations, and now with your very own producer. Think of the tool as part of your music journey, not something meant to replace it.
Find out more and get signed up at the link in bio. #partner"
Readers and followers were quick to point out the rather glaring conflict of interest of a music magazine promoting the erasure of the role of human producers by using AI technology in order for artists to refine their music, commenting things along the lines of "a reputable music publication normalizing AI in the production of music is so cynical and very dangerous" (@brettquillen) and "if SPIN starts treating AI-produced music as anything other than a threat to real artists, it will rightfully lose all value and credibility" (@brockaun).
Beyond just readers and followers becoming upset – which is any publication's backbone, their readership – other magazine editors were in the comments, telling SPIN that "gross. Anything made by AI isn't art. Delete this crap" and "also… imagine a MUSIC (a respected one… maybe formally respected) promoting AI created music. So gross" (Jeremy Saffer of Outburn Magazine).
Most notably, vocalist of Mammoth, Wolfgang Van Halen, also expressed his distaste with the post, commenting something short, but sweet:
via GIPHY
And, if you visit SPIN's website, their ad space is currently showing Producer.ai ads.
However, it's not the first time SPIN has come under fire for questionable conduct for a publication.
In 2023, the founder of SPIN, Bob Guccione, Jr., wrote a letter (titled Free Speech: In Defense of Jann Wenner) in support of Rolling Stone co-founder Jann Wenner's book The Masters and its lack of diversity and representation in Wenner's interviews with some of the 'greats.'
After the book was published, Wenner was interviewed and asked about why he didn't include women or people of colour, the people who helped cement the genre of rock'n'roll. Wenner went on to state that the people he chose for his book "had to meet a couple criteria, but it was just kind of my personal interest and love of them. Insofar as the women, just none of them were as articulate enough on this intellectual level.”
He continued by saying that in his mind, "Joni [Mitchell] was not a philosopher of rock ‘n’ roll. She didn’t… meet that test. Not by her work, not by other interviews she did. The people I interviewed were the kind of philosophers of rock…. I suppose when you use a word as broad as ‘masters,’ the fault is using that word. Maybe Marvin Gaye, or Curtis Mayfield? I mean, they just didn’t articulate at that level."
With that response and the book, people were not happy with Wenner, and SPIN's founder Bob Guccione, Jr. penned a letter in support and published it through the publication, with a portion of it reading:
"But he’s entitled to his opinion, isn’t he?
It’s inaccurate — and you can’t always say someone is wrong in their opinion, but in this case he’s empirically wrong — but all he’s really guilty of is expressing that opinion in clumsy language, if we’re being generous, or stupid, insensitive language if we’re not. Mostly he’s guilty of expressing a sentiment that is not politically correct. One that’s not part of the prescribed, sanctioned set of things you can say and think in America today.
And that’s what horrifies me, sickens me. That’s the greatest danger, not his indelicate way of saying that he thinks only old white rock stars can properly explain rock ‘n roll."
Guccione Jr. goes on to state throughout the letter that Wenner is allowed to be "wrong" and that freedom of speech is freedom of speech.
However, freedom of speech is not freedom of consequences, and the consequences were that Wenner was relieved from his position on the board of directors for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as well as his position within "Stand Together Music." Wenner went on to apologise through his book publisher for his remarks.
And well before that incident in 2023, back in 1991, Guccione Jr. was named in a Guns 'N Roses diss track titled "Get In The Ring" despite SPIN being avid fans and supporters of GNR at the beginning of their career.
This diss-track came after Guccione Jr. published an alleged contract that Guns N' Roses were making publications sign that basically dictated what was said in the piece and publications ran the risk of a $100,000 fine if they didn't comply. Guccione Jr. published the contract due to it's exorbitant demands.
This obviously caused friction between SPIN and Guns N' Roses, leading to the song in which Axl Rose wrote:
"And that goes for all you punks in the press
That want to start shit by printin' lies
Instead of the things we said
That means you
Andy Secher at Hit Parader
Circus Magazine
Mick Wall at Kerrang
Bob Guccione Jr. at Spin,
What you pissed off cuz your dad gets more
pussy than you?
Fuck you
Suck my fuckin' dick"
Despite what was a noble publication, who sent their journalists to the frontlines and had warrants issued for their arrests because of it, it appears they have succumb to supporting 'the right to be wrong' and AI music producers.
Since the time of posting, numerous people have commented that they will be unfollowing SPIN due to their partnership with an AI company.
