What you need to know
- YouTube detailed a new experiment for content creators with Dream Track access that lets them “restyle” a piece of music.
- Restyling a song leverages the platform’s AI tool for a 30-second clip with a completely new genre and mood based on your description.
- YouTube debuted Dream Track late last year as a feature that can create music in the same style as their favorite artist and recreate their voice.
YouTube is reportedly kickstarting a new test that advances its AI-based generation features for music.
The platform’s latest test involves an expansion of its Dream Track AI experiment that a “limited” number of content creators can try (via The Verge). According to YouTube, this test will let creators “restyle” a song using descriptors via a prompt given to its AI software. The company states it has made a few “official songs” available to creators, courtesy of “select” music partners.
Creators with access can select an eligible song and “describe how you want to restyle it.” YouTube states the AI will generate a remix based on a user’s description to create a 30-second clip usable in a Short.
Since these clips are only usable in Shorts, YouTube states the quick video will credit the original song. More importantly, the platform will note that the music users are listening to is generated/remixed by AI. This will most likely be displayed in the bottom right corner of the Short which, when clicked, will take users to more videos created using the original soundtrack.
The experimental post highlights that creators can alter the “genre or mood” of the song from the provided list. YouTube claims the “customized” soundtrack will retain the “essence of the original song’s vocals and lyrics.”
Unfortunately, as the publication noted, YouTube has not provided a list of the eligible songs for creators to experiment with.
YouTube detailed its new experiment, Dream Track, late last year. The Shorts-only feature leverages Google’s DeepMind “Lyria” model to create instrumentals and vocals. Through Dream Track, the company stated that users could create 30-second snippets of music in the “style of their favorite artists.” The AI could sample a popular artist’s voice and turn it into something completely new. The idea was to help content creators create soundtracks that help bypass the hassle of paying royalties.
While it seems useful, a tool such as Dream Track has raised a few eyebrows about protecting a music artist’s IP (intellectual property).
AI has continued to rise on YouTube as the company highlighted AI generation through Veo. This is another piece of software from Google’s DeepMind kitchen that lets users create AI-based backgrounds or “concepts that were once impossible to visualize.” Using Veo limits users to a six-second clip for a Short. However, it seems the platform intends users to utilize this software to “fill in any gaps” they may have with a Short.
