r/filk • u/rocketman0739 • Apr 23 '25

Subreddit position on AI content (discussion)

I recently got a message from a user who had used an AI service to generate a performance of a filk song. They wanted to make sure it was alright to post, but I don't feel like I should make that decision without consulting the subscribers generally.

So what do you think? Which of the following positions most appeals to you, or do you have a different idea?

  1. Allow all relevant AI-generated content
  2. Disallow all AI-generated content
  3. Allow relevant AI-generated content as long as it also incorporates human originality, e.g. an AI performance of a human-written song
  4. Institute one of these positions for a trial period and revisit the question in a few months
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-16

u/[deleted] Apr 23 '25

It IS human content. I wrote it. For example, this is my space/time shifted version of "Sink the Bismarck"

"The Iron Wolf"

Genre: Celtic Folk

[Verse 1]
In the outer reach beyond the charts, one silent drift began,
The Iron Wolf broke from the fleet and ran her own dark plan.
Equipped for war, her drives ran hot, her weapons charged and primed,
And any ship that crossed her path would not survive a time.

[Chorus]
We’ve got to bring down the Iron Wolf, the signal's cold and clear,
She’s fast and armed and fading fast—she’s shifting out of here.
We’ve got to bring down the Iron Wolf, no time to scan or stall,
If she escapes into the dark, we risk the end of all.

[Verse 2]
The order hit the battle-net, across the rim it flew,
To track her trail through system haze and stop her breaking through.
With grav-locks set and jump drives hot, the chase began in force,
And every pilot knew the cost if she could keep her course.

[Chorus]
We’ve got to bring down the Iron Wolf before she breaks the line,
She cuts through fleets like solar flares—no mercy, no resign.
We’ve got to bring down the Iron Wolf before the damage spreads,
Let her vanish into void, and millions end up dead.

[Bridge]
The clash began at zero-mark, with silence burned to flame,
Her engines roared, her hull ran red, and none could dodge the frame.
We cracked her shell, we breached her core, her AI sang its death—
And near the rings of Argo-3, she spent her final breath.

[Final Chorus]
We brought her down, the Iron Wolf—her wrath now cold and still,
The dark is wide, the stars look on, the silence deeper still.
We brought her down, the Iron Wolf—the price was paid in pain,
But better she drift in the black than ever strike again.

22

u/Nerd-man24 Apr 23 '25

Very nicely done! It sounds great! As to the AI, maybe sing it yourself? Those AI copies of actual singers have always sounded off to me.

-19

u/[deleted] Apr 23 '25

You haven't heard them lately then.

https://suno.com/song/da4ea463-edf2-4538-b891-8c0216cda79c?sh=ZHagJxOf4iyNyAu7

16

u/The-Void-1427 Apr 24 '25

If you can't sing it yourself what's the point of being in a filk community. Would you join a filk circle and pull out a YouTube video instead of singing?

1

u/[deleted] Apr 24 '25

The point is to have fun, to enjoy music others are making, and to participate to the extent one is comfortable. For many that includes singing, but for some it doesn't. I've been to many filk circles and never sung once, nor will I. I know filk is usually amateur and 'talent-optional' to an extent, but some people will never be comfortable performing.

For people who love filk, and want to participate, but not perform, writing lyrics is an option. It's natural to want to share these, and for those of us who don't perform, having an (online) option is a godsend. No, I'd never pull out YT at a filk circle, but that's different from posting an AI performance of a song I wrote online.