The BBC reports that Paul McCartney, one of the four Beatles, will be releasing a new song featuring John Lennon’s voice. McCartney dubs this “the final Beatles song.”
When the Beatles broke up and Lennon was murdered in 1980, he had been working on a composition prior to his death. Some of his tapes and notes had been given to McCartney following his death, as was a composition called “Now and Then.”
New advances in technology is the basis for the new release. Audio quality can be cleaned up, and adding instruments is also be relatively easy. However, the unique feature of this song is the use of Artificial Intelligence in recreating Lennon’s voice. Training AI on his voice, isolating it from others and instruments, can enable Lennon to say the lyrics that he wrote but never finished.
Legal questions arise with such a case. Will Lennon’s estate receive compensation for this song? Is another party allowed to use someone’s voice and have them say what they want? Ethical questions abound in a a world where “deep fakes” exist.
The Beatles continue to be on of the most popular group despite their age, and individuals from the group such as McCartney can continue to perform. He also recently showed that he is able to duet with Lennon’s voice, even though the artist passed away more than forty years ago.
