Will real singers be "left out" when Vietnamese music has more and more virtual singers? (Part 2)

Vietnam's first virtual singer causes both curiosity and controversy

Keeping up with the trend of applying IA (artificial intelligence) to music production technology in many countries around the world, at the end of 2022, the performance of two virtual singers Michau and Damsan was officially launched at the Ho Do International Music Festival held in Ho Chi Minh City. This can be considered the first virtual singer created by a Vietnamese creative team and launched in Vietnam.

The images of virtual singers Michau and Damsan were introduced at the Ho Do International Music Festival in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Organizing Committee.

However, it was not until mid-March 2023, when BoBo Studio - a Vietnamese unit released the MV "How to say love you" by a virtual singer named Ann, that the concept of a virtual singer was mentioned a lot. Ann is considered the first virtual singer to have an independent and complete product released in Vietnam. This immediately caused a lot of curiosity and mixed opinions among experts and the music-loving community.

In the MV, the singer appears with short doll hair, a round face, big eyes, a high nose, and white skin. She plays the role of a person waiting and missing the person she loves. The scene changes continuously from a dandelion field, a starry sky, a room flooded with light, a sunset on the sea, the deep blue ocean floor... All of these resonate to create a romantic color with a lively and reasonable rotation. However, the expression on Ann's face is very lifeless, her mouth moves very stiffly... so just by looking at it, people can recognize that this is a robot character. Music producer Nguyen Phi Vu shared that he had to ask for models and select from many different sources to create the image of singer Ann. The identities of these individuals are kept secret because they belong to the creative team's technological secrets.

According to BoBo Studio, Ann is a combination of AI algorithms and real sounds. Ann's voice is simulated to be an 18-year-old female singer. The song processing for Ann is very different from that of a real singer. The team selects the voice color, digitally recreates and combines recording techniques to create a satisfactory voice. To add emotion, the team uses many natural human sounds such as breathing or inhaling to create authenticity.

Singer Ann - the first virtual singer in Vietnam to have an independent music product. Photo: Producer.

However, after 3 weeks of release, the MV "How to say I love you" by virtual singer Ann has only reached over 188,000 views - The number is quite modest compared to the products of current singers. Many opinions say that Ann's voice is similar to that of singer Thuy Chi. The voice is thin, light and a bit soaring. However, the similarity is only about 80% because Ann's voice also has a sharpness, reminiscent of former teen pop singers such as Bao Thy, Khong Tu Quynh or Truong Quynh Anh. Moreover, this is a mezzo-soprano voice, not a soprano.

Musician Nguyen Van Chung shared with Dan Viet : "I see people criticizing the MV "How to say love you" by virtual singer Ann, but I find it very interesting. I highly appreciate the dedication of the crew when investing a lot of time, money and effort to carry out this project. Looking from the perspective of an audience, I see that the MV has many beautiful angles with a dreamlike world that is very difficult to film in real life. Ann's singing voice is also acceptable . "

Singer Nam Khanh - Lecturer of the Vocal Department of the Ho Chi Minh City Academy of Music told Dan Viet that the MV "How to say I love you" was elaborately made with very impressive visuals. However, the crew chose an inappropriate vocal tone, using natural human sounds such as breathing or taking a breath combined with digital technology. As a result, listeners feel that Ann's voice is similar to a certain singer, but it is unclear who. The mechanical and naive way of handling the song makes the work predictable and smooth.

Will virtual singers overshadow real singers?

Virtual singers are not a new concept in the world. In some Asian countries, some prominent names have appeared such as: Hatsune Miku (Japan), Lac Thien Y (China), Adam (Korea)... Most AI voices attracted attention from the market at first, but then quickly fell into oblivion.

MV "How to Say I Love You" by virtual singer Ann. Source: BoBo Studio.

Musician Nguyen Van Chung confided that when he saw the music products of virtual singers in Japan, he also wanted to do a project like that. However, due to lack of funds and resources to do so, he had to temporarily put his "dream" on hold. Because doing a project like this requires the use of high technology, a lot of time investment, a lot of effort and money to be able to produce a product that can be called satisfactory.

This musician commented that virtual singers will have more advantages than real singers, which is that they always have a clean profile, without scandals, because every word the virtual singer says is carefully censored by a team. Virtual singers also always appear with a beautiful, smooth, youthful, fashionable and novel appearance. This is also the easiest way to make an impression on the public that real singers sometimes cannot do.

In addition, virtual singers always have a voice that is easy to listen to, catchy, has few errors and keeps up with the tastes. Virtual singers' music products are always invested in terms of images, space, context, etc., so they are vivid, attractive, and captivating to viewers. That can be a space that real life does not have (also known as a dream world) and real singers, even with a lot of money, cannot do it. For these reasons, many people are worried that in the near future, virtual singers will usurp the throne of real singers.

"I think that the first music product of a virtual singer has not been widely accepted because anything new will create a feeling of strangeness, caution, and scrutiny. Not to mention that the first product cannot be perfect and well-prepared right away. The pioneer will have to encounter many difficulties and learn to get used to that. But I believe that in the future, if there is still financial potential and passion, the team will create more perfect and complete products, overcoming the errors that the first product is making. And then, the virtual singer will gain more affection from the music-loving public. From an artistic perspective, if a virtual singer has a good song that can easily go viral, there is still the possibility of development, but that requires an element of luck," said musician Nguyen Van Chung.

Singer Nam Khanh also believes that virtual singers will have more advantages than real singers, such as they will stay young forever, have no scandals, and are not involved in personal scandals. They will also have many advantages in appearance to attract viewers because they are products of technology and the creativity of many people. Their music will also always change, not only limited to Pop, RnB, Rock, Dance... but will have many different vocal colors, suitable for the tastes of many music listeners. Virtual singers can not only participate in music performances but also act in movies, fashion shows, and do commercial activities.

"I'm not worried that virtual singers will make real singers lose their position and no longer be "favored"... but in fact, virtual singers have too many advantages to reach the public, even the most difficult audience. With the rapid development of science and technology, virtual singers will be no different from real singers and they will make great strides. They are also creating a new generation of audiences and competing fairly with real singers. It is natural that real singers will have to share audience share or have their audience share taken over by virtual singers, everyone can see it coming," singer Nam Khanh added.

(To be continued)

Source: https://danviet.vn/nguy-co-tu-ca-si-ao-ca-si-thuc-se-bi-that-sung-khi-nhac-viet-ngay-cang-nhieu-ca-si-ao-bai-2-20230406103647911.htm