Alex Fefegha (2020) by Olivia Ema
Artist Alex Fefegha explores collaborative interactions between humans and emerging A.I. technologies.
As co-founder of Comuzi Lab, a design invention studio based in London, Alex applies emergent technologies for next generation products and services for clients like Nike, ASOS, Uber, BBC, University of Arts London, Ustwo, Waltham Forest Council and the NHS.
Here Alex talks through his latest project, 'Hip Hop Poetry Bot', developed as part of the AMI Grants.
Alex Fefegha's Hip Hop Poetry Bot (2021) by Alex Fefegha
Tell us about the Hip Hop Poetry Bot?
My vision for the Hip Hop Poetry Bot was simply to see what could happen if I could train a machine learning model on hip hop and allow it to generate stories, poems or advice to an audience.
I wanted to create a database of the amazing work that has been constructed by talented black individuals and use AI to both explore the wealth of this material and present rap & hip hop in new ways to the public.
What drew you to hip hop?
I believe that hip hop’s success as a genre has accelerated by technology. Since its inception, it has relied on technology, from sound systems and turntables in the early days to digital audio workstations used by producers of hip hop today.
Hip hop as a genre is highly political and its powerful message has been amplified by the technology that facilitates its creation, dissemination, and consumption.
Music has always been a tool to explore black futures, hip hop uses technology as a medium to communicate alternative futures to the mainstream, stimulating political concepts of liberation.
It is an art form that its producers have revolutionized the use of technology in ways that incorporate priorities of black culture.
Alex Fefegha (2020) by Olivia Ema
How does the Hip Hop Poetry Bot use AI?
So far we have experimented with training the Hip Hop Poetry Bot on the lyrics of various hip hop artists. However, as with much work by black artists, the vast public archives required to effectively train such an AI algorithm don’t exist.
We have an algorithm that works, but we don't have the content to train it.
I am therefore using this platform as an opportunity to make an open call to rap and hip hop artists, asking them to contribute their lyrics to a new archive that can be used to train the model.
What are your hopes for the future of the project?
I am looking forward to seeing who contributes to the project, and how the lyrics shared will effect the outcomes of the algorithm.
I hope that with enough lyrics contributed I will be able to release it to the public, and I can't wait to see how people interact.
Find out more about the Hip Hop Poetry Bot.
Created with the support of friends such as Holly Grimm, Cyril Diagne, Rifke Sadleir, Artists + Machine Intelligence, and Google Arts & Culture.
Much love to Ross Goodwin & Errol King for helping shape some initial ideas for this experiment.
Photography by Olivia Ema
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