Embracing Transformation in AI-Generated Music Videos

The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is drastically reshaping creative economies, aesthetically just as much as in terms of production. In the case discussed in this chapter, generative AI is increasingly frequently used in the production of music videos, a genre driven by the imperative to innovate and be ‘hip’ throughout its entire history. This leads to the development of a recognizable visual language, which is innovative, although not completely new. The lack of control over AI-generated imagery does not allow for perceivably realistic moving pictures; the resulting fluidity of ‘apparatus-less audiovisions’ affords unbounded transformations in the vein of surrealism. This chapter argues that this particular mode of co-creation with AI can be traced back to the original surrealism movement, which used the principle of automatism and chance as a springboard for creative exploration. Acknowledging this aspect of art history may be insightful in terms of how new creative forms emerge, as well as allowing more conscious and productive use of them today.