2021 SOP 102 Do You Believe in Life After Autotune?

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Artist: Bob Tozier
School: North Allegheny

Notes:

Auto-Tune may be the most divisive effect in music. Artists have protested it publicly at the Grammys, and critics have derided the effects for its inauthentic reproduction of the voice. And yet, nearly a decade since Jay-Z prophesied the death of Auto-Tune, the sound is alive and thriving in contemporary pop and hip-hop. Journalist Simon Reynolds has written a definitive history of Auto-Tune for Pitchfork that fundamentally changed how we hear this sound. This deep dive criss crosses geology, technology, and the evolution of pop as we know it.

Songs Discussed:

Cher - Believe

Katy Perry - Firework

Rihanna - Diamonds

Future - F*ck Up Some Commas

Emma Robinson - Stay (Cover)

Imogen Heap - Hide And Seek

Zapp & Roger - Doo Wa Ditty (Blow That Thing)

T. Pain - Chopped N Screwed ft. Ludacris

Lil Wayne - “How To Love”

Kanye - “Heartless”

The Black Eyed Peas “Boom Boom Pow”

Jay-Z - Death Of Auto-Tune

Elvis - Mystery Train

The Beatles - Tomorrow Never Knows

Whispering Jack Smith - Baby Face

Kesha - Tik Tok Bon Iver - Woods

Future & Juice WRLD - Jet Lag ft. Young Scooter

Shek Wes - Mo Bamba

The Carters - Apeshit

Further Reading: Simon Reynolds - “How Auto-Tune Revolutionized the Sound of Popular Music" Simon Reynolds -Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture

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Comments

Raef Smalley from: North Allegheny - posted: March 7, 2021
Auto tune can make some great songs, but also anyone can really do it. Artists in the rap community would use it but also would prove how talented they are by singing with no auto tune.

Sarah Feick from: North Allegheny - posted: March 10, 2021
i never would have thought autotune came from the petroleum industry!

Reka Gotz from: North Allegheny - posted: March 10, 2021
I am personally not a fan of overly-autotuned music, or using autotune as a stylistic choice. However, I do see its merit in perfecting vocal tracks to make them more pleasing to our ear. I never liked Future or Kanye's autotuned songs. For some reason it's just annoying to me.

Luke Hartle from: North Allegheny - posted: March 21, 2021
I am not the biggest fan of autotune, but it is interesting how many songs use it without me even knowing.

Kassi Barry from: North Allegheny - posted: March 25, 2021
Autotune just seems like something that people use more as a stylish take on music. Though it can be appealing to the ear, as we use it more and more I think we stray from truly talented people. Not real music to me!

Olivia Belcher from: North Allegheny - posted: March 25, 2021
I think autotune as a stylistic choice has potential when used in the right context, but overly autotunned music really seems to diminish a song's quality. It's a really interesting tool for music making.

Hunter Badamo from: North Allegheny - posted: March 26, 2021
I like autotune to fix some slight imperfections in the vocals. But like anuthing, it sound terrible if you use it too much

Vaishnavee Sundararaman from: North Allegheny - posted: March 26, 2021
When I hear the word autotune, all I can think of is pop songs to be honest. Today, it's such a common thing that is used and we never think of how much it can completely change someone's voice. It's very important to use autotune VERY sparingly to make sure it doesn't completely change the voice of the person.

Nicholas Palermo from: North Allegheny - posted: March 26, 2021
I personally believe that autotune can't replace a good performance. At the same time if it is used tastfully it can enhance the perfromance.

Rohan Puri from: North Allegheny - posted: March 27, 2021
I find autotune in rap to a good stylistic tool, such as with Travis Scott or Future. In the other genres such as pop or jazz, it seems fraudulent to me. People give the illusion that they are good singers with a good look while there are others who are great without the autotune and are not given a chance.

Kate Patterson from: North Allegheny - posted: March 28, 2021
I believe that autotune can make or break a song. Sometimes autotune is necessary in order to make the vocals pleasing enough for listeners to listen to the song. However, if there is too much autotune, the song can be completely ruined.

Eric schaefer from: North Allegheny - posted: March 28, 2021
I like some songs that use autotune but I dont like it itself. I feel that it makes people that arent so talented look talented and when that happens the people that are talented dont get a chance. I personaly would love nothing more than for rap to fall and be replaced by a new genre. I like some rap songs but it is nowhere near my favorite genre.

Bri Cobbey from: North Allegheny - posted: March 28, 2021
I feel like autotune is mainly used to change the style of a song, compared to making the main vocal/instrument better. While in some cases it is used to doctor the pitch (which in my opinion sounds bad), I think that it can add to the song if done properly and used stylistically.

Julia Maletta from: North Allegheny - posted: March 28, 2021
I don't like autotune and I believe that overuse of it is a reason why vocalists in general aren't respected as true musicians. Unfortunately, there have been too many instances of popular artists failing miserably in live performance because they didn't have a sound engineer there to correct their pitch.

Erik Bloomquist from: North Allegheny - posted: March 29, 2021
Many artists in the hip-hop community use an excessive amount of auto-tune on purpose as a stylistic device. While I personally would not choose to make music in this way, I enjoy and appreciate the music they make with it.

Cassandra Pultorak from: North Allegheny - posted: March 29, 2021
I enjoy how the autotune varies depending on the style of music the artist prefers. I don't think autotune makes or breaks a song, but it definitly has an impact when used too much.

Josi Pietrzyk from: - posted: March 29, 2021
No one is perfect so it makes sense to me that people use autotune when they aren't singing live. I would want to fix my mistakes.

Nick Faber from: North Allegheny - posted: March 29, 2021
Autotune is simply a tool at the artist's disposal. Like anything else it can be used in moderation, however I find it really frustrating when people get angry over a song using "autotune," while simultaneously having little clue about the music industry or theory as a whole.

Rae Dwyer from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
Though some people need autotune, I do not like hearing a "fake" voice or something that has been fixed. I love raw music. I am also simple and love just piano and voice, so I don't know.

Clay Sheleheda from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
I think auto tune is a tool that can be used to achieve a desired effect. It can be overused, but good use of it can really add to a song.

Amy Hendricks from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
Autotune is definitely a tool that can be used correctly and make a song great! People hate on autotune, but I think in the right context and with the right technique it can really make a song.

Nick Brar from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
I find autotune to be enjoyable in certain aspects. There are some people who can easily pull it off, and others who make it sound awful. TPain is an example of someone who uses it well and is known for his use of autotune in his songs.

Grace Elliott from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
I think autotune/pitch corrector is genius, but when used to fake personal ability, it can be deceiving.

Ethan Chen from: North Allegheny - posted: March 30, 2021
I'm not a fan of autotune when used excessively and tastelessly, but I don't mind it when used as a stylistic effect. I prefer vocoder for that usage though.

Hyunjun Chang from: North Allegheny - posted: March 31, 2021
My personal approach to autotune is that it can be utilized if it is deemed fitting for a song. If it is skilfully used, it adds a kind of resonance addendum to a piece. However, it all that is used it autotune, then I may personally be very averse to listen.

Dylan Shields from: North Allegheny - posted: March 31, 2021
I think its interesting that auto tune came from the petrolium industry. I think for some songs it makes it good but other songs it just shows that the musician doesnt have real skill and needs it as a crutch.

Nick Lev from: North Allegheny - posted: March 31, 2021
Personally, I dont enjoy the sound of autotune but, in some cases, it can fit well with the style of the song. In other cases, autotune can define the style of the song.

Nathan Lam from: North Allegheny - posted: March 31, 2021
Autotune is great to fix little mistakes in songs, but when's it's used too much, it just becomes something completely different. Artists like T-pain have formulated their careers around autotune.

Kai Su from: North Allegheny - posted: March 31, 2021
Being a mainly classical musician, it is interesting to see how different the steps to create produced music compared to live music are.