The Beatles, one of the most influential and popular bands in history, will release a final record later this year, featuring the voice of John Lennon, who was killed in 1980.
The record, titled “Let It Be… Again”, will include new versions of songs from the band’s last studio album, “Let It Be”, which was released in 1970. The songs will be enhanced by artificial intelligence technology that can recreate Lennon’s vocals from a demo tape he recorded before his death.
Paul McCartney, who announced the news on Monday, said that the project was a way of honoring Lennon’s legacy and celebrating the 50th anniversary of the band’s break-up. “We wanted to do something special for our fans and for John,” he said. “We found this tape that he had made with some ideas for the songs, and we thought, why not use AI to bring him back to life?”
The AI technology, developed by a company called DeepMind, uses deep neural networks to analyze audio data and generate realistic sounds. The company claims that the technology can produce high-quality vocals that are indistinguishable from human recordings.
McCartney said that he and the other surviving members of the band, Ringo Starr and George Harrison, collaborated with DeepMind to supervise the process and ensure that the vocals matched Lennon’s style and personality. “It was amazing to hear his voice again,” he said. “It felt like he was in the studio with us.”
The record will also feature some new arrangements and instruments, as well as guest appearances by other artists, such as Elton John, Beyoncé and Ed Sheeran. McCartney said that the record was a tribute to the band’s musical legacy and a gift to their loyal fans. “We hope that people will enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it,” he said. “It’s our way of saying thank you and goodbye.”