How should I think about my role as an artist using AI?

Think of yourself as moving from being a musician in an orchestra to being the conductor. In the past, all of us in our careers were just musicians, maybe playing one instrument, or two if we were really talented. With AI, you’re no longer playing the instruments yourself - you’re conducting an orchestra of AI musicians. Your orchestra used to be just one instrument: you. Now you can add woodwinds, brass, percussion - building out a full orchestra over time. At first it won’t be a big, beautiful built-out orchestra, but as you practice and learn, you can keep adding musicians (AI tools) and conduct them to increase your output dramatically. The split going forward is simple: are you practicing and building your orchestra, or are you not?

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Asked by artists learning to use AI · Answered by Patrick Shanahan · art-marketing-podcast · 2025-06-19