Is Grimes pretending to be poor? All about her net worth backlash
Can we place a definitive price on the voice of an artist? While some estimations swing as low as $3 million in the case of superstar Grimes, others skyrocket to $12 million. But the value she offers extends beyond mere financial figures.
Hailing from Canada, Grimes has made significant contributions as a singer, musician, producer, songwriter, and visual artist. While her association with Elon Musk has undeniably brought her additional media attention, it is Grimes’ artistic prowess that has truly propelled her into the limelight. She has carved a distinctive path in the world of music, accumulating a net worth of around $12 million.
How does such a nerdy girl get a net worth like that? Let’s see how all of that money made it into her wallet.
Grimes AI
As top-tier record labels wrestle with the legalities of AI-generated songs featuring prominent artists, Grimes sways to a different beat. In a bold Twitter announcement, she declared, “Feel free to use my voice without penalty.”
She’s ready to share 50% of the royalties from any successful AI-rendered track using her voice. Still, this declaration remains a preliminary thought, its details and applications yet to be ironed out.
Grimes is not alone in welcoming AI and voice-cloning technology. Holly Herndon, a music innovator, developed her own artificial voice, Holly Plus, in 2021. Members of Herndon’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) can profit from the voice model.
However, this realm is not without controversy as a Drake and The Weeknd AI-generated song was swiftly removed from streaming platforms due to copyright violations.
Elf tech
To continue pioneering, Grimes has introduced AI voice software called Elf.Tech. This beta platform enables artists to record vocals and replicate them in Grimes’ voice. Commercial releases using the voice model can be made in exchange for a portion of the master-recording royalties.
Coinciding with the platform’s launch, Grimes teased two new tracks, “Music for Machines” and “I Wanna Be Software,” although their release dates remain under wraps.
Grimes urges users of Elf.Tech to exercise tasteful discretion with the tool. Offensive extremes, like creating an AI Grimes “Nazi anthem” or “baby murder songs,” are prohibited. Elf.Tech also features a remake of Richie Hawtin’s Plastikman track “Passage (Out)” and a toolset to train your own Grimes AI, powered by the generative AI, Triniti.
The future
Holly Herndon champions AI’s role in music, urging a balance between artist protection and technological experimentation. She launched Spawning in 2022 with her partner, Mat Dryhurst, an initiative focused on artist ownership of training data. Herndon frames this exploration as a form of “communal voice ownership,” inviting everyone to benefit from the proceeds generated from its use.
Following her last release in early 2022, “Shinigami Eyes,” Grimes parted ways with Columbia last month. The track, intended to be the lead of an EP titled Fairies Cum First, which hasn’t yet arrived, was her last single with Columbia. Grimes’ repertoire also includes her fifth album, Miss Anthropocene, released in 2020, an AI lullaby, and a lively appearance on The Eric Andre Show.
Grimes continues to redefine the value of her voice, both financially and creatively. She is unafraid to venture into the uncharted territories of music and AI, reshaping the industry with her innovations. Can this fusion of music and AI change how we define the worth of an artist’s voice?
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