Who is Rich K?  I wanted to talk about my music, the controversy with AI, and my inspiration.  

I am a real person, and I did write the lyrics to my songs.  However, I am not in a band.  I've played guitar on and off my entire life.  I currently have 10 guitars, and currently stick with PRS.  My baby is the PRS S2 Custom 24-08.  I have an old Line 6 Spider II amp, a modern Orange amp, and Positive Grid's Spark I and II.  

I started writing songs for The Weight of Severed Wings for my daughter and granddaughter.  After dealing with personal tragedy and loss, it was a rough road to recovery.  A road that will never end.  The lyrics just started flowing, and I just started writing.  A long time ago, I did go to film school and wanted to be a writer.  I never thought I was any good, which is why I didn't pursue it.  Once I had lyrics, I started playing the guitar to create chord progressions to build the song.  These songs were originally just simple guitar ballads I sang myself.  I was introduced to AI music with Suno.  The first thing I did was record myself playing and uploaded the song.  Gave some direction, and my song came to life.  I've come a long way since that first day.  From just a sentence or two, I now write really long paragraphs describing the musical style, including breaking down each instrument.  

My thoughts on AI music?  There have been bands/singers lip-syncing or using computers to enhance their studio sound forever.  There are famous DJs. and EDM music creators that have huge followings.  They use computers to create their sound, and their fans don't care.  If I create an AI song someone likes, they can listen and enjoy it.  If you don't, don't listen.  I do have two issues I am against.  There are people who clone a famous voice and attempt to release a “new” song by that artist.  Absolutely against that.  2nd, pretending to be real.  AI creators need to be upfront exactly how they created their music.  Let people decide, knowing the truth.  

I've seen people ask the question, are you actually proud of music you didn't create?  I acknowledge I'm not the performer. I'm proud of my lyrics and the stories I'm telling.  I think of myself as a Writer and Producer.  The AI is a band, and I do my best to direct the band to create the sound I want.  I make the band play the song over and over, giving direction, until I get what I want.  I'm proud of the final product.  I listen to the songs I produce.