Many artists today use the technology known as "Auto-Tune." Auto-Tune is a device created by Antares that essentially pitch corrects off-key singing and instruments to make a song sound better. In fact, it is so powerful that some clever people on you-tube have even =kLi6BpF1IZ4">auto-tuned the news.
This isn't just limited to records; it can even be used during a live show. Singers/groups such as Rascal Flatts, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill have all used auto-tune during their live performances.
Other artists, most notably T-Pain, use Auto-tune to create vocal effects that can't be created using a normal voice.
So, is this cheating? Should these people be allowed to compete for the same awards, such as the grammys, as unmodified singers?
When is it not used to create effects? Isn't that basically the whole point?
Well, it was created to correct off-key singing. Which is what most people use it for. It makes it pretty hard to tell if someone has perfect pitch or if they are just editing their voice.
Techinally, I suppose that that is an effect. Josh was probably refering to the T-Pain-esque special effects though, and not the intended enhancements.
Actually, that's exactly what it does. If the person using it has no singing talent and therefore uses it, it turns their lousy singing into decent or good singing, therefore making the song better. So yes, I can see the steroids reference is a legitimate one. I don't like that idea, but I do like it when it is used to give the voices special effects. And I pretty much gave up on most music nowadays anyway since almost everything is produced rather than played. So honestly what's the difference if you produce a voice or produce a drum beat?
I honestly hate the stupid voice effects. In the old days, there were no special effects, and you couldn't perfect your work in the studio. There are still artists out there who don't use these "enhancement" features and keep that all-natural style alive.
Seeing as I haven't actually stated my opinion yet...
My main problem with autotune is that it makes singers too uniform. When all singers have perfect pitch and rhythm, they all sound the same. Sure, it sounds good. But it doesn't have any character. The slight imperfections in songs make them sound human and real. Autotune may be pretty, but it's also fake.
