Kanye West, T-Pain, and Autotune

I will start this article by saying that I am a musician who is completely disconnected with the "pop culture" scene. In all honesty, I have been guilty of labeling "artists" like Kanye West, T-Pain, the Jonas Brothers, and other American idols as completely talentless and cheap. Sure, this may be true if you are using musical talent as a basis to measure, but this is not the case. They are performing music for a different purpose than musicians like myself. They do it for the capital gain. For them, music is just another business. This is what I will refer to as "pop music."

That being said, it is important to discuss the controversial topic of Autotune. For those who don't know, Autotune is a plug-in used with audio recording software to automatically re-adjust the pitch of recorded vocals to correct any mistakes in hitting a certain pitch (i.e.: it automatically tunes your voice). This can be a highly useful utility for vocalists who tend to waste time (and therefore money) trying to hit the exact pitch needed when recording a song. However, artists such as Kanye West and T-Pain abuse the plug-in, using an overwhelmingly obvious amount of pitch correction. These pop musicians most likely have no concept of tone, yet they can utter their lyrics in a tone-deaf manner while relying entirely on Autotune to adjust their vocal samples to whatever pitch they want. This is what causes the cheesy, synthesized, and robotic vocal sound you may hear in songs such as "Heartless" by Kanye, or virtually any T-Pain song.

Now, as a reader and an honest musician who has been writing, recording, and performing for years, I am probably expected to continue bashing these "artists" for being talentless hacks. The truth is, the only animosity that true musicians have for these pop-musicians it that they, for some reason, share the same title as we do; we are all referred to as "musicians" by the common public. This, understandably, can be annoying at times.

However, after dwelling on this topic for weeks, I decided that overusing Autotune is not a horrible thing. Besides the fact that it sells like hotcakes to the majority of Americans, it has another less obvious merit. Remember when Jimmy Page played his guitar with a violin bow? Or how about when Les Paul decided to put electric pick-ups in a solid body guitar? There are numerous innovations in music, and they are all based around using a musical tool in an unconventional way. As a person who values music more than any other aspect of his life, I can honestly say that I do not think the overuse of Autotune is a bad thing. Technology is a strange subject. We are constantly progressing, and art forms are becoming less and less organic and natural. This is the natural flow of life (as we know it, at least). Just as the 80s introduced synth pop, it is inevitable for technology to continually influence the art form of music. It has lead to both positive and negative innovations. Regardless of the pros and cons, it is still progress. How can we, either as pop musicians or real musicians, make progress without using our tools in unconventional ways?

An overuse of Autotune gives a distinct sound. Regardless of whether or not you personally enjoy this sound, there are clearly enough people in the world who do. This is why you cannot turn on a TV or radio without hearing a Kanye West or T-Pain song.

Music is an indescribable thing. It is the closest thing to magic we have. While I may never once in my life put a Kanye West CD in my CD player (and I may even poke fun at his obvious lack of artistic value), his music (as well as every other Autotune-abusing rapper's music) makes a LARGE portion of human beings feel good enough to make me appreciate it for its effects. Music is all about making people feel good, right?

So, I ask all of my fellow real-musicians, stop bashing the pop music industry as well as Autotune. It may not float your boat, but it makes most Americans forget their problems and smile for a little while. It is time to stop being pretentious. Realize that there are people out there who are able to enjoy Kanye West's music. While it may be shocking to actual musicians, it does not take away the merit of his songs. Judge those around you by their effects, not their intentions. Don't be jealous of others for their ability to enjoy pop music. Ignorance is bliss.