Tilly Norwood: the AI that sings the worst song in history

A Controversial Launch for Tilly Norwood

Last fall, the production company Particle6 made waves by introducing Tilly Norwood, an actor entirely generated by artificial intelligence. This initiative immediately sparked a wave of criticism in Hollywood, where the idea of a digital actor was seen as a threat to the traditional industry. Emily Blunt, the award-winning Golden Globe actress, expressed her concerns in an interview with Variety magazine, stating, "Good God, we’re screwed. Come on, agencies, don’t do this. Please stop."

Despite these warnings, Particle6 decided to press on and recently released a video clip featuring Tilly Norwood in a song titled "Take the Lead." This release was met with skepticism and was quickly labeled the worst song ever heard by some critics.

An Unflattering Comparison to Xania Monet

Upon discovering "Take the Lead," some expected a performance similar to that of Xania Monet, another digital personality who had successfully reached the Billboard R&B charts with an AI-generated song titled "How Was I Supposed to Know?". However, Norwood's creation was perceived as a failure, reaching a level of discomfort rarely seen in AI music. Monet's song, although AI-generated, at least had the advantage of lyrics written by a real person, which is not the case for Norwood.

Norwood's song, despite mobilizing a team of eighteen people, including designers, prompters, and editors, failed to convince. It addresses the challenges of being an AI underestimated by critics but lacks humanity and emotional depth. The lyrics attempt to defend Norwood's legitimacy as an AI actor, but they come off as hollow.

Disconnected Lyrics

The lyrics of "Take the Lead" attempt to assert Norwood's legitimacy as an AI actor. She states in front of the camera, "They say it’s not real, that it’s fake, but I’m still human, don’t be fooled." Yet, this statement rings hollow, as no AI can truly claim a human experience.

The song, reminiscent of Sara Bareilles' style, begins by evoking a creativity and human spark that Norwood claims to possess. The chorus calls on AI actors to take the lead and create their own future, a message that seems disconnected from any reality experienced by humans. The lyrics include lines such as "Actors, it’s time to take the lead" and "AI is not the enemy, it’s the key," highlighting the unrealistic nature of the message.

An Unconvincing Music Video

In the video, Norwood walks through a data center, an image that might be the only part grounded in reality. The change of scenery to a stage where she is applauded by a virtual audience accentuates the gap between the supposed triumph and the reality of her digital existence. When the second chorus arrives with a predictable tonal shift, she walks onto a stage, looking at a stadium of fake spectators who offer her an undeserved moment of "triumph."

Some might think that Norwood is addressing all actors, but the final lyrics confirm that she is specifically speaking to her AI peers, urging them to embrace their power and shape their destiny. The closing lines, such as "Take your power, take the stage" and "AI actors, we create our destiny," reinforce this idea.

A Harsh Critique of the Music Industry

Twenty years ago, Pitchfork, an influential music media outlet, severely criticized Jet's album "Shine On." This critique, while harsh, resonates today with the criticisms directed at AI-generated works. Pitchfork had given the album a 0.0 out of 10 and, instead of a written review, included a YouTube video of a monkey urinating in its own mouth. These creations are often perceived as empty and derivative of the work of real artists.

The SAG-AFTRA union has expressed its opposition to the use of AI to replace actors, emphasizing that Tilly Norwood is merely a product of a computer program trained on the work of artists without their consent. This practice threatens to jeopardize artists' livelihoods and devalue human art. According to SAG-AFTRA, "Tilly Norwood" is not an actor; it is a character generated by a computer program that has been trained on the work of many professional artists—without permission or compensation.

A Threat to Authentic Art

Unlike Jet, which drew inspiration from rock bands to create its music, Tilly Norwood is literally the product of AI models based on unauthorized training data. This approach raises questions about the future of art and the place of human artists in an increasingly AI-dominated world. Artists complain that these productions sound hollow and merely replicate the work of past artists, devaluing human art and threatening artists' livelihoods.