An animated biopic project on Edith Piaf, a monument of French song, will be developed with the help of artificial intelligence, Warner Music and the artist’s rights holders announced on Tuesday.
No release date is yet planned for this work called Edith. The project is currently “in the final stages of development” and is based on some images produced for internal use, those close to Warner Music France told AFP.
The announcement of this “innovative and revolutionary technological project, using AI to recreate one’s voice and image”as we can read in a press release, comes as 2023 marks 60 years since the disappearance of the interpreter of No, I do not regret anything.
“Reinforce the authenticity and emotional impact of your story”
For EdithAI technology “trained on hundreds of voice clips and images, some dating back more than 80 years, will bring Piaf’s distinct voice and image to life to reinforce the authenticity and emotional impact of his story”further explains the press release. “Recordings of Edith Piaf’s greatest songs will of course be used in their original version.”
This 90-minute film, “which will take place in Paris and New York between the 1920s and 1960s”will be “told in Piaf’s voice and will reveal previously unknown aspects of his life”further specifies this text.
After recent wild uses of AI in music by amateurs – a duet made with the voices of Drake and The Weeknd without their consent, for example – the process reached a new stage with the release at the beginning of November of a new official Beatles track. Now and Then was born from a demo recorded at the end of the 1970s by John Lennon in his New York apartment. After his assassination in 1980, his widow Yoko Ono handed over the band, voice and piano, to the other members of the group in 1994.
AI technologies recently made it possible to isolate Lennon’s voice and mix it with recordings of other musicians, including George Harrison before his death in 2001. The song was completed and released by both living members. , Paul McCartney, 81, and Ringo Starr, 83.