Singer Shaan has voiced strong criticism of the growing trend of AI-generated song remixes that recreate the voices of late singers. Speaking to ANI, he described the practice of using AI to produce covers in the voices of legendary artists such as Kishore Kumar and Mohammed Rafi as “cruel” and “wrong”.
“I find this AI very cruel when they try to produce songs like ‘Yeh gaana agar Kishore da gaate, yeh gaana agar Mohammed Rafi gaate…’ The songs they sang in the 40s, 60s, and 80s were very different. If they were singing today, it would again be different,” Shaan said.
The singer, known for hits such as ‘Chand Sifarish’, went on to call it unfair to artificially recreate the voice of a dynamic artist. “It is wrong that you make that song sound like they would sing it like that. You can’t AI a person whose singing has been so dynamic. It’s wrong to take the tone of a few songs and make tons of tracks and covers with that,” he explained.
Shaan also urged audiences not to compare AI-generated voices with the originals. “The audience is so silly, they’re even comparing it with them. They should hear the songs that came out of the singer’s throat, out of their sensibilities. Do not listen to this AI stuff,” he added.
Image:IMDb
Meanwhile, Shaan is set to honour the legendary Kishore Kumar with a dedicated concert, Forever Kishore Shaan Se, on 19 September at The Grand Theatre, NMACC, Mumbai. Presented by NR Talent and Event Management, the event promises an evening of timeless melodies, with Shaan performing classics such as ‘Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas’, ‘Neele Neele Ambar Par’, ‘O Mere Dil Ke Chain’, and ‘Chingari Koi Bhadke’.
Shaan’s musical journey was profoundly shaped not only by Kishore Kumar’s legacy but also by years of training under the legendary Padma Vibhushan Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, the guru to icons including Asha Bhosle, A.R. Rahman, Sonu Nigam, Hariharan, and Shilpa Rao.
Speaking on the concert, his son Rabbani Mustafa Khan, co-founder of NR Talent & Event Management, said: “Shaan is my brother. My late father, Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, was his guru. When you have your family to back your dreams, it becomes even more special. I feel proud to be the organiser of this event that will see Shaan spread his magic, as we celebrate the legacy of Kishore Kumar ji.”
Namrata Gupta Khan added: “Our core principle is to organise shows that are not only unique and larger than life, but also offer an unadulterated experience to music aficionados. Forever Kishore Shaan Se is one such endeavour. And who better than Shaan to celebrate the rich legacy of Kishore Kumar ji? His love for Kishore da is palpable. We can’t wait to offer this experience to the audience.”
Tickets for the concert will be exclusively available on BookMyShow.