Method Man has hesitations around the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
During an interview on Hot97, the rap artist had several reasons for his heart posture toward the technology. One of his reasons include Drake’s single “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which was a shot at Compton’s Kendrick Lamar. It also featured AI-generated audio using the lyrics of the late Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg.
“Kendrick we need ya, the West Coast savior/Engraving your name in some Hip-Hop history/If you deal with this viciously … Call him a b-tch for me/Talk about him liking young girls as a gift for me,” a AI-generated Tupac Shakur lyric read at the song’s intro, per Rolling Stone.
The song was later removed by Drake after Shakur’s estate stated they were willing to move forward with legal action, per NBC News.
Method Man expresses the song is one of the reasons he is raising an eyebrow toward AI. He also mentions challenges around intellectual property (IP) and streaming, which he says complicate matters for him even further.
“I’m still trying to figure out AI but I have seen some things that have made me raise an eyebrow — the Drake diss with the [fake] 2Pac and Snoop, the fake Kendrick [diss songs]. It’s a lot to it,” he said in an interview with Hot97. “I mean, I think it goes way deeper than that, especially when it comes to IPs for artists that came from my era. Because honestly I’ve never gotten a streaming check for any of my music.”
Despite pushback, Method Man is not crossing AI off his list all together.
He added, “Like I said, I’m still trying to figure it all out because there may be someone who can make a perfect mix of the two where — I’m not saying to accept it, but at least make art out of it, and that’s what I’m always for, the creative part.”
