Critics Were Once Our Best Guides to New Music. Then Came Streaming and AI
by Casey Newton
Platformer
January 25, 2024
In the early 2000s, Pitchfork was the most influential music publication in the world. Its reviews were lengthy, opinionated, and often controversial, but they were also essential reading for anyone who wanted to stay on top of the latest music. Pitchfork helped launch the careers of countless artists, from Arcade Fire to Kanye West, and it played a major role in shaping the sound of popular music.
But in recent years, Pitchfork has fallen on hard times. The rise of streaming services like Spotify has made it easier than ever for people to discover new music on their own, and Pitchfork’s reviews have become less and less relevant. The publication has also been criticized for its elitism and its focus on white, male artists. In 2022, Pitchfork laid off a third of its staff, and its future is now in doubt.
Pitchfork’s decline is a symptom of a larger shift in the music industry. The rise of streaming services has led to a decline in the sales of physical albums, which has in turn led to a decline in advertising revenue for music publications. At the same time, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is making it easier for people to discover new music without the help of critics. AI-powered music recommendation engines like Spotify’s Discover Weekly playlist are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and they can now provide users with personalized recommendations that are often as good as or better than what a human critic can offer.
The decline of music criticism is a loss for the music industry and for culture as a whole. Music critics play an important role in helping people to understand and appreciate new music. They provide context and analysis that can help listeners to get more out of the music they’re listening to. They also help to hold artists accountable for their work and to ensure that the best music gets the attention it deserves.
The rise of AI is not necessarily a bad thing for music criticism. AI can be used to create new tools and resources that can help critics to do their jobs better. For example, AI can be used to analyze large amounts of data to identify trends and patterns in music. It can also be used to create personalized recommendations for listeners, which can help them to discover new music that they might not have otherwise found.
But AI is not a substitute for human critics. AI can’t provide the same level of insight and analysis that a human critic can. AI can’t write the kind of in-depth, thought-provoking reviews that can help listeners to understand and appreciate new music. And AI can’t hold artists accountable for their work in the same way that a human critic can.
The future of music criticism is uncertain. But one thing is for sure: AI is not going to replace human critics anytime soon. Human critics will always have a role to play in the music industry, and they will continue to be an important part of the music culture.