AI generates everything! ... except the essentials, according to Mosimann

Mosimann analyse la place de la création automatisée en studio de musique. L'intention artistique prime sur la simple exécution technique.

Mosimann isn’t hiding behind the screen: for him, artificial intelligence is an idea box, never a black box. Curious and pragmatic, he explores it just as vinyls, CDs, or USB drives were once mastered: with enthusiasm, but without sacrificing the essentials. In his music as in his shows, AI is a launching pad, not the engine of the journey. Because, as he points out, the real spark always comes from the human element.

Fifteen years into your career, a Star Academy win, hits, collaborations, and now a voice on France Inter... and here you are exploring musical AI like few French artists dare to do publicly. What pushed you to put yourself out there in this field, even though it remains a divisive topic in the industry?

It would be a lie to say that AI is already part of my daily musical routine. On the other hand, I remain very curious. I have always been fascinated by tools that disrupt the way we create. When I started DJing, vinyl purists refused to accept the arrival of CDs. Then, those who had switched to CDs didn't want to hear about USB drives. And tomorrow, there will inevitably be a new technology that we'll have to learn to embrace. To me, AI fits right into this logic: you have to move with the times, understand the tool, and see how it can enrich creation rather than threaten it.

If you look at your tracks from before and after these tools came along, what does that actually change in your workflow?

It doesn't replace anything; it adds a step. Before, I used to go through my synths, my hardware, my sample hard drives. Today, I have a new idea box. I see it a bit like Splice or other current apps that let you search for samples: every time I start a track with a sample found on Splice, or an AI-generated texture, I realize that by the end of the production, that sample almost always disappears. They are actually launchpads, starting points that allow me to stay creative. AI doesn't particularly save me time; it opens doors for me, it sometimes even throws me off course. But nothing ever replaces emotion or heart: those are still my only driving forces, the ones that truly allow me to move forward.

Take your last track: if you had to trace AI's journey through it, what would that look like? Like “initial prompt → iterations → selection → human post-prod”? Or is it messier than that?

Whatever tool I use, I always start with the basics: a piano and vocal, heart, emotion, humanity, and above all, no AI. Only then, to simplify: initial prompt → several iterations → selection of an idea that inspires me → reworking with my synths and instruments → human post-production. And often, just like with a sample found on Splice, the original trace disappears throughout the process. AI is not there to write for me.

Do you remember the moment when AI truly blew you away? And on the flip side, which obstacle is holding you back the most today: output quality, locked catalogues, or legal uncertainty?

I remember a specific moment: the first time I heard an AI-generated voice sing with an almost believable emotion. I got a real chill. But it also reminded me that nothing replaces the human heart, the imperfect moment that creates the true beauty of a performance. Today, the most significant obstacle isn't just the rendering quality or locked catalogues; it's the lack of a clear framework to protect artists' rights.

Tracks 100% generated by artificial intelligence are starting to emerge on Spotify, Deezer, and elsewhere... Simple curiosity, a new musical genre, or a creative dead end in your opinion?

I clearly side with the musicians who are concerned. If an artist uses AI as a launching pad, why not, it’s an additional creative tool. But a track 100% created by AI that is released on streaming platforms, to me, shouldn't exist. Even today, it is extremely difficult for a musician to make a living from their craft, from their passion. So if we add "ghost tracks" generated in a single click, we make creators even more vulnerable. I don't want to sound like a conservative, because I remain fascinated by progress. But we have to ask the question: how do we help artists, how do we put a clear law in place, how do we condemn abuses? I find what Deezer is doing with its system that detects AI-produced tracks interesting. That’s the direction we need to head in: protecting creators, providing tools to platforms, and preventing AI from replacing the human heart in music.

Collabs with Grand Corps Malade, Patrick Bruel, Louane... How do your peers react when you talk to them about AI?

They are intrigued, sometimes a little suspicious. But above all, they are great performers: Patrick, Louane, Grand Corps Malade... Whatever happens, regardless of the source or the tool, they always know how to bring the essential, the heart, the emotion, the soul. And that is what makes all the difference: AI can generate sounds, but it will never replace the power of a human performance.

Major labels vs. Suno/Udio: lawsuits on one side, deals on the other. Feels like the 2000s Napster mess all over again, doesn't it?

Yeah, we’re right in the middle of that chaos. Just like back in the Napster days, technology is moving faster than the law. But if Napster ended up giving birth to Spotify, maybe this mess will yield a new, fairer model. The only difference is that today, we absolutely have to figure out regulation beforehand to keep artists from being the big losers in the end.

In our previous issue, our friend and composer Christophe Menassier concluded his column by saying: “AI is not the enemy of music, it is the enemy of a system [the music industry] that no longer knows what art is.” How would you summarize the place of AI in music today?

I would say that AI is not the enemy of music, but rather that it sheds light on our contradictions. It forces the industry to ask itself the right questions: what makes the value of an artist, a song, an emotion? If we think of it as a tool, it can enrich creation. If we let it dictate the rules, it