Reviving a Lifelong Dream with AI

To tell this story, we have to travel back to my early high school days, a time when Iron Maiden shirts were everywhere in the halls, worn by students and even a few teachers. My grades rose and fell as my focus drifted away from academics and toward a single ambition: to become a professional musician, a rock star.

By the mid-90s, after a few close brushes with fame, I realized that even some of my musician friends who "made it" were still struggling financially. Wanting to protect myself, I dove into learning the realities of the music business. I made the tough decision to invest in building my own recording studio and self-produce my work, instead of depending on the industry. I studied recording engineering and, with partners, built one of the first digital studios in the San Francisco Bay Area. At about the same time, my final band dissolved, mostly due to the frustration of trying to find a singer who could match our progressive metal style. I was left with about three albums’ worth of demos, some songs rough and some more polished, and I wondered what to do next.

In November 2025, I came across a YouTube video about Suno, a leading AI music generation tool. Curious, I uploaded one of my roughest recordings to see what would happen. Within minutes, Suno produced two new versions of my song. The production was polished and radio-ready. The AI acted like a producer, filling in gaps, tweaking arrangements, and elevating my work far beyond what I had expected. I was both stunned and thrilled.

I quickly subscribed to Suno’s pro plan and started uploading more of my long-forgotten tracks. At first, it felt odd. Was I cheating by letting AI co-write my songs? I wrestled with questions about authorship and authenticity, but kept experimenting. Soon, I realized I was listening less to my usual streaming playlists and more to my own songs. There was no denying it. These tracks sounded good, at least to my ears.

Over time, I started to look at it this way:
- First, it doesn’t matter who or what creates the music; if you really like to listen to it, because a good song is a good song.
- Second, it is not much different than how real professional music is produced in the studio. Some of my favorite songs had studio musicians come in to play parts beyond the instruments the band played.
- Third, when you get a record contract and you go into the Studio, the record company helps you find a producer and engineers. The best producers are the ones who, through some rearranging, help turn good music into great music. So I asked myself, how is this any different? The only difference is it was thousands of dollars cheaper, and AI is filling out these other roles.

It has been a few months, and I have now created close to three albums worth of my music. And I have ventured back into writing music in other genres like modern new age, salsa, Middle Eastern pop, etc.

I am not aiming for stardom, but I would love to share this music with the world and see if others enjoy it as much as I do. I am now looking into the proper method for copyrighting music that is co-written with AI. And while making money is not my goal, who knows, I could potentially earn a little pocket change from these songs.

Of all the incredible things AI can do, becoming my musical co-writer and producer has been the most meaningful. One of my music business instructors once said that music is unique among art forms. It offers deep enjoyment, utility, and a powerful connection to important moments in life. Music is also timeless, something you can return to and enjoy again and again over the years.

Creating music is a gift, both for the creator and the listener. Certain songs can instantly transport you back to a specific time or to a feeling you had. There is something special about finding a song you love, and it is even more meaningful to create something that others might cherish.

So for now, it’s just me, myself, and AI, quietly making music in hopes that someone out there will enjoy it as much as I do. And who knows? Maybe one day a young band will pick up one of my songs and bring play live on stage.