As AES 2025 in Long Beach approaches, I’m reflecting on the honor of delivering last year’s keynote in New York City—where I explored the rise of AI and its promise for the music industry. Transcript is below.
WOKE
AUDIO ENGINEERING SOCIETY KEYNOTE ADDRESS
FALL 2024 | NEW YORK CITY
In 2008, Erykah Badu released her highly anticipated fourth album, New Amerykah Part One (4th World War), to critical acclaim. One of the standout tracks, "Master Teacher," introduced a cultural concept through a single four-letter word that has since been imprinted in the social consciousness, American lexicon, Black colloquialism, and the hip-hop vernacular: "woke."
In the song, Badu uses "woke" as a metaphor for staying vigilant, aware, and agile in uncertain and turbulent times, particularly during moments of change. The repeated refrain, "I stay woke," echoes throughout the track, urging listeners not to "sleep on the job," but rather to remain alert in the face of social upheaval and ambiguity, seeking clarity through progress.
Fast forward to 2024, and it's no surprise that "woke" has resurfaced as a dominant term in the cultural zeitgeist. In the context of today’s social and technological shifts, staying "woke" means being mindful of the rapidly evolving landscape in which we live and work. The audio industry, in particular, is facing significant challenges with mass layoffs and emerging technologies that are ushering us into a new era of music recording and production. As we pursue advancements in audio technology and innovation, remaining diligent, aware, and agile is more crucial than ever.
For today’s discussion, I want to explore what "woke" means to me, personally and professionally. Specifically, I’d like to focus on how it applies to us as a community within the audio industry—how we must stay vigilant in the face of both the challenges and opportunities brought on by new technologies, such as artificial intelligence. In essence, we’ll dive deeper into the concept of being awake. Woke: Why? Opportunity. Kinship. Equity.
WHY
Why do we do this? As audio engineers, regardless of the specific disciplines we contribute to in the world of production, we all share a deep passion for making things sound incredible. This passion for sound quality and reinforcement cuts across our different realities and identities. We feel an inherent responsibility to uphold the standards of our field and adhere to the core tenets of our profession. We are driven by the simple desire to make things sound great, and that is why we’re here.
Think back to the first time you heard a song on the radio. Or the first concert you attended. What about the first album you bought with your own hard-earned money? How did it feel to hold that album in your hands as you left the store? And the first time you streamed a song online—what was that like? Now, picture the first time you heard an immersive movie score in a theater. For me, it was Ready Player One. It sounded like the movie was jumping out of the screen.
My first album was Blacks’ Magic by Salt-N-Pepa, released on March 19, 1990. My mother bought the cassette for me because every day on the way to preschool, I would hear their hit song “Expression” while strapped into my car seat. I would sing along, belting out the rhymes from the back seat, completely alive with the music. That experience did more than solidify my love for hip-hop and R&B—it sparked my imagination. In my mind, I was the fourth member of Salt-N-Pepa, my imaginary friends! I would pretend I was on tour with them, rehearsing background vocals all around the house after school.
I hadn’t listened to that album in years, but recently decided to stream it, curious to see if it would still sound good. To my amazement, it did. Despite the limitations of digitally encoded audio, the sound quality transported me back and gave me the same warmth the album always had. (Unbeknownst to my mother, and perhaps much to her chagrin, that moment set me on the path to becoming a music producer and audio engineer, igniting my pursuit of excellence in sound.)
Though your experience may be different from mine, you likely remember the moment you developed your special relationship with audio—the transmission of sound, the power of recorded and reproduced music. This connection reminds us of our purpose. Why are we here? Regardless of race, gender, sexuality, religion, politics, or any other identifiers, we are all driven by, aligned with, and committed to excellence in audio.
No matter the era, playback medium, or genre—just like Blacks’ Magic—we are motivated to ensure that audio experiences continue to inspire and inform future generations. So that some young kid out there has the opportunity to discover their passion for music, films, games, recording, live sound, or any other form of audio through our contributions.
OPPORTUNITY
Today the audio industry and all of the adjacent industries that it helps to support (tv, film, recording, gaming, touring, etc) are in flux. We are being faced with new opportunities to think about how this industry defines itself. We face the challenge of continuing to innovate. We are tasked with the challenge of honoring the discoveries of the past while avoiding the pitfall of being constrained by outdated methodologies or an excessive reverence for traditional orthodoxy. We continue to think critically about the ways we perpetuate our “why.”
Each revolution in audio has caused a stir. Without question we are experiencing truly revolutionary times in the recorded music space. The advent of new technologies such as artificial intelligence have provided a level of automation that has yet to be seen in the audio industries. We are both amazed by its efficiency and horrified by the potential influence it will have for the usefulness of manual labor and the jobs of many hard-working audio professionals who have contributed to the recording industry for decades. Dating back to research workshops on college campuses such as Dartmouth in the 1950s, the theories of artificial intelligence and machine learning have raised ethical concerns since their inception. Specifically, generative artificial intelligence, which can be defined as artificial intelligence capable of generating text, images, videos, or other data using generative models, often in response to prompts, is rapidly redefining the world of audio.
AI music generation applications such as Suno AI and UDIO are generating better songs in seconds than I have written all year. In fact, I used Suno AI to generate a song from the text prompt “AI taking my job and making better songs in seconds than I have written all year.” Let’s have a listen now to the resultant song, which is aptly titled “Taking My Job.”
Who do these people over at Suno think they are? According to their website they had this to say for themselves:
“Suno is building a future where anyone can make great music. Whether you're a shower singer or a charting artist, we break barriers between you and the song you dream of making. No instrument needed, just imagination.
From your mind to music. We are a team of musicians and artificial intelligence experts based in Cambridge, MA. We are proud alumni of pioneering tech companies like Meta, TikTok and Kensho, where our founding team worked together before starting Suno.
We like to ship code, make music and drink coffee. Our company culture is all about music and experimenting with sound — from lunchroom conversations to the studio in our office.”
Opportunity and widespread industry fear make for interesting bedfellows. According to a billboard article entitled “Major Labels Sue AI Firms Suno and UDIO for Alleged Copyright Infringement” the RIAA, Universal, Warner and Sony joined forces to sue Suno AI and UDIO, “dubbed two of the most advanced start-ups in the emerging field of AI music.”
This response is reminiscent of the music industry's reaction to peer-to-peer file sharing that was ushered in by Napster in the late 90s and early 2000s, which was the subject of my graduate thesis at NYU. This major shift resulted in the ushering in of the digital audio revolution that still characterizes our business today.
KINSHIP
So, where do we go from here? And I do emphasize the word we—because wherever we go, we must go as a community. It’s crucial that we embrace the power of kinship and recognize that intergenerational collaboration is the key to building a healthy, ethical future for audio professionals.
What we know for sure is that music and technology will prevail. There’s no resisting technological advancements—they’re here, and they will continue to evolve. Equally, there’s no separating music from the lives of the communities who use it daily to strengthen their cultures, identities, and environments. Music and technology are undeniably intertwined, and both will come out on top.
Just as Napster and the technology that revolutionized music-sharing didn’t disappear, artificial intelligence and the ease with which it can create music and audio products are here to stay—and will only grow more sophisticated.
But let’s be clear: the audio community is not helpless in the face of these changing times. On the contrary, we have an opportunity. As I mentioned earlier, now is the time to come together, to unite and collaborate in designing a future that works for all of us.
There are far more productive and forward-thinking ways the audio community can band together, instead of repeating the mistakes of the past like suing college students as we did with Napster. Here are some examples of strategies the community can adopt to foster collaboration and shape a future that benefits everyone:
Develop Ethical Licensing Models
Instead of legal battles, the community can work together to create ethical licensing frameworks for AI-generated content. These frameworks could ensure that human creators are recognized and compensated, even when AI is involved in the creation process.
Example: An AI-powered track could include metadata that attributes both the human and machine contributions, and a royalty system that ensures proper payouts to artists and engineers. This would prevent exploitation of music creators while embracing technological advancement.
Mentorship and Skill Development Programs
Intergenerational collaboration is key. Older generations of audio professionals have invaluable expertise to pass on, while younger generations bring fresh perspectives on how to use technology creatively. By encouraging mentorship programs, the industry can unite different age groups and skill sets to prepare for the future together.
Example: Established audio engineers and producers could mentor younger generations at events like Gender Amplified songwriting camps, blending traditional methods with cutting-edge tech.
Collaborative Data-Sharing Initiatives
With AI and machine learning thriving on data, the audio community could come together to create shared repositories of high-quality, ethically sourced audio data. This could serve as a resource for training AI models that benefit the industry, while respecting intellectual property and creator rights.
Example: A coalition of producers, engineers, and developers could create an open-access database of music samples, loops, and audio effects that AI can use without infringing on individual copyrights, and with shared profits for the original creators.
Crowdsourcing Innovation through Competitions
Audio professionals can come together to host competitions or hackathons that encourage creative use of technology. These events can foster innovation by challenging the community to create new tools, production techniques, or business models that serve the entire industry.
Example: An AES-backed competition could challenge participants to develop AI tools that enhance, rather than replace, the role of the producer—such as intelligent mixing plugins or mastering algorithms that operate alongside human engineers.
EQUITY
How are we advocating for one another? How are we pushing for better rates and working conditions for audio engineers in the music industry? We’ve all heard the stories of 48-hour sessions and burnout. Years ago, at AES, I raised the issue of audio health and mental well-being to a panel of engineers, and they laughed. Today, the conversation around mental health is more important than ever. Engineers are overworked, underpaid, and often subjected to some of the worst conditions in recording studios. It’s hard not to wonder if this contributes to the industry's ongoing challenges, where content sometimes struggles to find its place in the market. Unethical production practices lead to diminished outcomes.
In many industries, labor conditions are a major concern, but audio engineers often get left behind in these discussions. We’re frequently overlooked when it comes to proper credit and fair compensation, too. Thankfully, there are innovators like Mixed By Ali and his platform, EngineEars, who are working to change that. As co-chair of the P&E Wing of The Recording Academy, I’m committed to continuing these conversations with advocates working alongside us to ensure that the "E" in engineering stands for equity.
CONCLUSION
Long after we are gone, after we’ve left this tiny rock floating in space, what will the music we make today say to future generations? We are incredibly fortunate to live in a time where we can preserve sound—where the experiences we create through music and audio are captured and immortalized through sound engineering and the recording arts.
When I think about the Psalms of David, I can only read them. According to the myth, King David was not only a ruler but also an accomplished musician, skilled in playing the lyre, an ancient stringed instrument with seven or eight strings. Biblical tradition tells us that he composed poems and set them to music, but we’ll never know what those compositions sounded like. We can only imagine.
Since the 19th century, however, we’ve had the gift of sound recording. This technology allows us to perpetuate our voices, our culture, and our art in ways that will outlive us. One hundred years from now, there will be people listening to the music we are creating today. What they will think or say about it, we cannot know. But I’m deeply curious about how it will make them feel and what it will convey to them. The tools we use do not define or hinder us. It's the intention that gives us our identity. In 100 years, perhaps a popular generative track like “BBL Drizzy” will continue to resonate with the hearts and minds of young listeners. However, I believe that the music of legends like The Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Michael Jackson, and Beyoncé will still hold a special place in their hearts. These artists dedicated years to honing their craft, creating timeless works that reflect their mastery and artistry. Artists will always have a place in art.
That’s why I urge all of us to think in terms of the long game. What we do today is not just about us—it’s about the enduring legacy of the human experience, passed down through the art we create. I’m humbled by the chance to contribute to that legacy.
Thank you.