Episode Details

In this episode of the Duff Radio Podcast, host Ty McDuffey sits down with John von Seggern, an accomplished technologist and musician, to discuss the future of music education, the role of AI in music production, and his unique career journey.

John shares his experiences working with electronic music pioneer John Hassell, his role at ICON Collective in Burbank, CA, and the exciting developments in AI tools for music. Tune in for a look into how technology is shaping the music industry and get a glimpse into John's fascinating adventures from Japan to Hollywood.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 - Introduction to John Von Seggern

1:24 - Online education business models and upsurge during the pandemic

3:17 - What assignments are like in music school - (Music theory, keyboard, computer production, music business, branding)

4:22 - Favorite DAW; Early days of Ableton music production software

5:30 - Teaching about AI, designing a course around AI

6:23 - Using Suno AI, Udio, and other AI art engines

7:53 - How Suno & other music generators were made; Copyright & other legal controversy 

10:45 - Using samples in training for AI models

13:02 - GPT 5 predictions, competition with Claude & Llama; Gpt2 in Chatbot Arena; Sam Altman's tweets 

14:42 - Claude Opus seems better than GPT4 for writing and blogging; GPT4’s weird phrasing gives it away as AI 

15:15 - Different AI models have different personalities and styles; AI LA events and speakers

16:42 - Training AI models on artists' voices to release music faster, Drake's AI Tupac song

22:08 - How much practice it takes to become a master musician 

23:14 - Making a career, gaining a following, and monetizing music pre-internet vs. post-internet

29:45 - Living in Hong Kong, touring with Chinese pop stars, traveling the world

35:23 - Japanese food and Eastern vs. Western cultural differences 

40:00 - Spending a semester abroad in India, Hindu and Buddhist philosophy

41:18 - Thesis paper on digitization of music through computers

44:25 - Value of human writing, thoughts, words, athletics, comedy, & physical jobs in the age of AI 

47:15 - Stable Audio, how will the future of music sound with AI?

51:40 Using Midjourney, Runway, and DALLE-2 for visual art

52:40 - Working with Native Instruments; Kontakt and Guitar Rig 

54:46 - Working on the soundtrack for the Academy Award-winning movie WALL-E

59:09 - Dr. Dre’s studio

Links to John's work:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnvon/
Bandcamp: https://johnvon.bandcamp.com/album/a-thousand-miles-from-nowhere
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/johnvon
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4l1zr042HH4fKxZQfC3qUl
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/John-Von-Seggern/author/B001JPBZAY?
ref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/john-von-seggern/135484459

Duff Radio:
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/duff-radio
X: https://twitter.com/DuffRadio
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5WWf9Ssh6f16mvcjb7vdyn
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/duff-radio-podcast/id1719531442

Ty McDuffey (host, owner of Duff Radio):
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ty-m-205709581
X: https://twitter.com/TyMcDuffey
Website: www.tymcduffey.com

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