“Robot rapper” FN Meka has signed a contract with music label Capitol Records, according to the Music Business Worldwide portal. He recently released his new single “Florida Water” featuring guest rapper Gunna and popular gaming streamer Clix.
The Virtual Rapper is the work of Anthony Martini and Brandon Le. They are the co-founders of Factory New – the virtual label that first created the robot rapper. According to Martini, his voice is that of a real human being, but everything else is based on the AI system. It is an artificial intelligence technology modeled on the neural network of the brain.
“Technically, FN Meka is the voice of one person,” Martini said in an interview with Music Business Worldwide. “But everything else – from its lyrics to the chords and tempo that underpin its music – is based on AI technology.”
Virtual luxury
FN Meka already has a large fan base and is very popular on social media. A year after the “virtual birthday”, it has amassed 10 million followers on the TikTok app and more than 1 billion views on YouTube. On his TikToku, FN Meka invites fans into his virtual world where there are luxuries such as expensive cars, helicopters and a machine that turns ice cream into watches.
Internet users outraged
FN Meka’s recording contract announcement was not without controversy. People objected to the “rapper” using vocabulary considered racist. The bot’s creators have also been accused of perpetuating harmful stereotypes on social media. In one of the Instagram posts, a policeman can be seen beating up a “rapper” in a jail cell. Internet users are outraged and demand that the bot be removed from the music scene and the Internet.
Ryan Ruden (Vice Chairman of Capitol Music Group) spoke. He sees the partnership with FN Meka as “the future of combining music with technology”. “It’s a mix of music, technology and gaming culture,” he said in an interview with Music Business Worldwide. “This is just a preview of what’s to come,” he added.
(jde)
