{{Short description|Audio processor that alters pitch}} {{Use American English|date=May 2023}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Free alternative|type=audio}}{{Infobox software | name = AutoTune | logo = | screenshot = 220px | caption = AutoTune running on GarageBand | author = Andy Hildebrand | developer = Antares Audio Technologies | released = {{start date and age|1997|9|19}}<ref name="AntaresTech.com-2000">{{cite web |date=2000-08-19 |title=Antares News |url=http://www.antarestech.com/files/news.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000819080205/http://www.antarestech.com/files/news.html |archive-date=2000-08-19 |access-date=2019-05-19 |work=AntaresTech.com}}</ref><ref>Preve, Francis. "Antares Kantos 1.0 Audio Synthesizer (PC/Mac)." Keyboard 28, no. 10 (10, 2002): 92-95, 97.</ref> | latest release version = 11<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.antarestech.com/products/auto-tune/pro |title=AutoTune Pro X |access-date=2023-06-04}}</ref> | operating system = Windows and macOS | genre = Pitch correction | license = Proprietary | website = {{URL|www.antarestech.com}} }}
'''AutoTune''' is an audio processor software application released on September 19, 1997, by the American company Antares Audio Technologies.<ref name="AntaresTech.com-2000"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=78170798|title=AUTOTUNE|access-date=2020-02-17|publisher=USPTO|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218074011/http://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=78170798|archive-date=2020-02-18|url-status=live}}</ref> It uses a proprietary device to measure and correct pitch in music.<ref name="patent">{{Cite patent|country=US|number=5973252|status=patent|title=Pitch detection and intonation correction apparatus and method|pubdate=1999-10-26|gdate=1999-10-26|fdate=1998-10-14|pridate=1997-10-27|inventor=Harold A. Hildebrand|assign1=Auburn Audio Technologies, Inc}}</ref> It operates on different principles from the vocoder or talk box and produces different results.<ref>Frazier-Neely, Cathryn. "The Independent Teacher—Live Vs. Recorded: Comparing Apples to Oranges to Get Fruit Salad." Journal of Singing – The Official Journal of the National Association of Teachers of Singing 69.5 (2013): 593-6. ProQuest. Web. 16 June 2014.</ref> AutoTune can be used in both post-production music mixing and in real-time live performances.
AutoTune was initially intended to disguise or correct off-key inaccuracies, allowing vocal tracks to be perfectly tuned. Cher's 1998 song "Believe" popularized the use of AutoTune to deliberately distort vocals, a technique that became known as the "Cher effect". It has since been used by many artists in different genres, including Daft Punk, Radiohead, T-Pain and Kanye West. In 2018, the music critic Simon Reynolds felt that AutoTune had "revolutionized popular music", calling its use for effects "the fad that just wouldn't fade. Its use is now more entrenched than ever."<ref name="Pitchfork" />
==Function== [[File:Audacity GSnap effect.png|thumb|Screenshot of Audacity showing spectrograms of an audio clip with portamento (upper panel) and the same clip after applying pitch correction showing frequencies clamped to discrete values (lower panel)]] AutoTune is available as a plug-in for digital audio workstations used in a studio setting and as a stand-alone, rack-mounted unit for live performance processing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antarestech.com/products/index.shtml|title=Antares product page|website=antarestech.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324012023/http://www.antarestech.com/products/index.shtml|archive-date=2017-03-24|url-status=dead|access-date=2 May 2018}}</ref> The processor slightly shifts pitches to the nearest true, correct semitone (to the exact pitch of the nearest note in traditional equal temperament). AutoTune can also be used as an effect to distort the human voice when pitch is raised or lowered significantly,<ref name="newyorker">{{Cite news |last=Frere-Jones |first=Sasha |date=2008-06-02 |title=The gerbil's revenge |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/06/09/the-gerbils-revenge |access-date=2026-05-23 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}</ref> such that the voice is heard to leap from note to note stepwise, like a synthesizer.<ref>"Antares Kantos 1.0." Electronic Musician 18, no. 7 (June 2002): 26. Music Index, EBSCOhost (accessed February 21, 2015).</ref>
AutoTune has become standard equipment in professional recording studios.<ref>Everett-Green, Robert. "Ruled by Frankenmusic," ''The Globe and Mail'', October 14, 2007, p. R1.</ref> Instruments such as the Peavey AT-200 guitar seamlessly use AutoTune technology for real-time pitch correction.<ref>Robair, Gino. "Waves of Innovation" Mix. Jun 2013.Music Index, EBSCOhost (accessed February 21, 2015)</ref>
==Development== thumb|Antares Vocal Processor AVP-1 (middle) AutoTune was developed in 1997 by Andy Hildebrand, a Ph.D. research engineer who specialized in stochastic estimation theory and digital signal processing.<ref name="AntaresTech.com-2000"/> He conceived it following the suggestion of a colleague's wife, who had joked that she would benefit from a device to help her sing in tune.<ref name="Zachary-2016" /><ref name="Pitchfork">{{cite web |author=Reynolds |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Reynolds |date=September 17, 2018 |title=How AutoTune revolutionized the sound of popular music |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/how-auto-tune-revolutionized-the-sound-of-popular-music/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190726001852/https://pitchfork.com/features/article/how-auto-tune-revolutionized-the-sound-of-popular-music/ |archive-date=July 26, 2019 |access-date=September 28, 2018 |work=Pitchfork}}</ref>
Over several months in early 1996, Hildebrand implemented the algorithm on a custom Macintosh computer.<ref name="Zachary-2016" /> Hildebrand's method for detecting pitch involved autocorrelation and proved superior to attempts based on feature extraction, which had problems processing elements such as diphthongs, leading to sound artifacts.<ref name="Zachary-2016">{{Cite news|url=https://priceonomics.com/the-inventor-of-auto-tune/|title=The Mathematical Genius of AutoTune|last=Zachary|first=Crockett|date=2016-09-26|work=Priceonomics|access-date=2018-10-05|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180917034527/https://priceonomics.com/the-inventor-of-auto-tune/|archive-date=2018-09-17|url-status=live}}</ref> Music engineers had previously considered autocorrelation impractical because of the massive computational effort required. Hildebrand found a mathematical method to overcome this, "a simplification [that] changed a million multiply adds into just four".<ref name="Zachary-2016" />
According to the AutoTune patent, the preferred implementation detail consists, when processing new samples, of reusing the former autocorrelation bin, and adding the product of the new sample with the older sample corresponding to a lag value while subtracting the autocorrelation product of the sample that correspondingly got out of window.<ref name="patent" />
Originally, AutoTune was designed to discreetly correct imprecise intonations to make music more expressive, with the original patent asserting: "When voices or instruments are out of tune, the emotional qualities of the performance are lost."<ref name="Pitchfork" /> Hildebrand presented AutoTune at the 1997 NAMM Show, where it became instantly popular.<ref name="Zachary-2016" /> It was released in September 1997.<ref name="AntaresTech.com-2000" />
On October 18, 2016, after nearly two decades of independent operation under Hildebrand, Antares Audio Technologies was acquired by Broadstream Capital Partners, a merchant bank based in Calabasas, California, in partnership with Corbel Capital Partners.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Equity |first=Generational |title=Generational Equity Announces Sale of Antares Audio Technologies to Broadstream Capital Partners |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/generational-equity-announces-sale-of-antares-audio-technologies-to-broadstream-capital-partners-300367604.html |access-date=2026-02-03 |website=www.prnewswire.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Antares Audio Technologies Acquired By Broadstream Capital Partners |url=https://www.generational.com/transactions/antares-audio-technologies-acquired-by-broadstream-capital-partners/ |access-date=2026-02-03 |website=Generational Group |language=en-US}}</ref> On April 26, 2019, Corbel Capital Partners realized its investment when Antares was acquired by a prominent New York-based family office.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Corbel Capital Partners — Antares |url=https://www.corbelcap.com/antares |access-date=2026-02-03 |website=Corbel Capital Partners |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Use ==<!-- Please don't add unsourced artists or productions to this list; it does not aim to list all uses of AT in pop music – only those that have been subject to third-party commentary -->
[[File:WKTU-FM's_Miracle_on_34th_Street_show_-_New_York_-_seen_on_December_11,_1998_Cropped.jpg|right|thumb|upright=0.7|Cher (pictured in 1998) popularized AutoTune with her 1998 single "Believe"]]The Aphex Twin track "Funny Little Man", from the 1997 EP ''Come To Daddy'', was released less than a month after AutoTune and was one of the earliest tracks to use it.<ref name="AntaresTech.com-2000" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-05-26 |title=Autotune: good or bad? |url=https://www.cnn.com/2015/05/26/tech/gallery/autotune-artists-mci/index.html |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> Cher's 1998 single "Believe" was the first commercial recording to use AutoTune as a stylistic effect, creating a robotic, futuristic sound.<ref name=Sillitoe-1999 /><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Flashback: Cher Brings the Future of Pop to ''Top of the Pops'' With 'Believe' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/cher-believe-top-of-pops-737084/ |last=Weingarten |first=Christopher R. |access-date=December 20, 2024 |date=October 15, 2018 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=June 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200620060908/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/cher-believe-top-of-pops-737084/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Cher, who proposed the effect, faced resistance from her label but insisted it remain.<ref name="autotune-nytimes">{{cite news |title=Cher Resurrected, Again, by a Hit; The Long, Hard but Serendipitous Road to 'Believe' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/11/arts/cher-resurrected-again-by-a-hit-the-long-hard-but-serendipitous-road-to-believe.html |first=Neil |last=Strauss |author-link=Neil Strauss |date=March 11, 1999 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161102162318/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/11/arts/cher-resurrected-again-by-a-hit-the-long-hard-but-serendipitous-road-to-believe.html |archive-date=November 2, 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times |url-status=live}}</ref> While AutoTune was designed to be used subtly to correct vocal performances, the "Believe" producers used extreme settings to create unnaturally rapid corrections in Cher's vocals, thereby removing portamento, the natural slide between pitches in speech and singing.<ref name="newyorker" /> Though AutoTune had been commercially available for about a year, according to ''Pitchfork'', "Believe" was the first song "where the effect drew attention to itself ... announcing its technological artifice".<ref name="Pitchfork" /> In an attempt to protect their method, the producers initially claimed the effect was achieved with a vocoder.<ref name="newyorker"/>
{{Listen |filename=Believe - Cher.ogg |title="Believe" (1998) |description=Cher's 1998 single "Believe" used AutoTune to deliberately distort vocals, a technique that became known as the "Cher effect".<ref name=Sillitoe-1999>{{cite magazine |last1=Sillitoe |first1=Sue |last2=Bell |first2=Matt |url=https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/recording-cher-believe |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241229092557/https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/recording-cher-believe |url-status=live |archive-date=December 29, 2024 |title=Recording Cher's 'Believe' |magazine=Sound on Sound |date=February 1999}}</ref> |filename2=Believe - Cher (No Auto-Tune).ogg |title2="Believe" without Auto-Tune |description2=For comparison, AutoTune is not applied in this section.}}
According to ''Pitchfork'', 1999 "Too Much of Heaven" by the Italian Europop group Eiffel 65 features the first example of rapping through AutoTune.<ref name="Pitchfork" /> The Eiffel 65 member Gabry Ponte said they were inspired by "Believe".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-story-of-blue-da-ba-dee-by-eiffel-65-video/ | title=The Story of 'Blue (Da Ba Dee)' by Eiffel 65 | date=21 March 2019 }}</ref> The rock band Radiohead used AutoTune on their 2001 album ''Amnesiac'' to create a "nasal, depersonalized sound" and to process speech into melody. According to the Radiohead singer, Thom Yorke, AutoTune "desperately tries to search for the music in your speech, and produces notes at random. If you've assigned it a key, you've got music."<ref name="REYNOLDS">{{cite web|url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=2001&cutting=131|title=Walking on Thin Ice|last=Reynolds|first=Simon|date=July 2001|work=The Wire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204233756/http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=2001&cutting=131|archive-date=4 February 2012|url-status=dead|access-date=17 March 2007}}</ref>
Later in the 2000s, T-Pain used AutoTune extensively, further popularizing the use of the effect.<ref>Farber, Jim (2007). "[http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/2007/12/11/2007-12-11_singers_do_better_with_tpain_relief-1.html Singers do better with T-Pain relief] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090208005810/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/2007/12/11/2007-12-11_singers_do_better_with_tpain_relief-1.html |date=2009-02-08 }}", ''New York DailyNews''.</ref> He cited the new jack swing producer Teddy Riley and funk artist Roger Troutman's use of the talk box as inspirations.<ref name="Lee">{{cite news|last=Lee|first=Chris|date=November 15, 2008|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-nov-15-et-tpain15-story.html|title=The (retro) future is his|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|access-date=13 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20160120223710/http://articles.latimes.com/2008/nov/15/entertainment/et-tpain15|archive-date=20 January 2016}}</ref> T-Pain became so associated with AutoTune that he had an iPhone app named after him that simulated the effect, "I Am T-Pain".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iamtpain.smule.com/|title=I Am T-Pain by Smule - Experience Social Music|website=iamtpain.smule.com|access-date=8 August 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725055846/https://iamtpain.smule.com/|archive-date=2017-07-25}}</ref> Eventually dubbed the "T-Pain effect",<ref name="Pitchfork" /> the use of AutoTune became a fixture of late 2000s music, where it was used in other hip-hop/R&B artists' works, including Snoop Dogg's single "Sexual Eruption",<ref>{{cite web|title=The 50 Greatest Vocoder Songs - #50 Snoop Dogg - Sexual Eruption|url=http://www.complex.com/music/2010/08/the-50-greatest-vocoder-songs/snoop-dogg|work=Complex|publisher=Complex Media|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120101191706/http://www.complex.com/music/2010/08/the-50-greatest-vocoder-songs/snoop-dogg|archive-date=1 January 2012}}</ref> Lil Wayne's "Lollipop",<ref>{{cite web|last=Noz|first=Andrew|title=The 100 Greatest Lil Wayne Songs - #3. Lil Wayne f/ Static Major "Lollipop"|url=http://www.complex.com/music/2010/11/the-100-greatest-lil-wayne-songs/lollipop-and-lollipop-remix-with-kanye|work=Complex|publisher=Complex Media|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121227040025/http://www.complex.com/music/2010/11/the-100-greatest-lil-wayne-songs/lollipop-and-lollipop-remix-with-kanye|archive-date=27 December 2012}}</ref> and Kanye West's album ''808s & Heartbreak''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Shaheem |first=Reid |title=Kanye West's 808s & Heartbreak Album Preview: More Drums, More Singing, 'No Typical Hip-Hop Beats' |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1597139/20081015/west_kanye.jhtml |publisher=MTV |date=2008-10-15 |access-date=2 November 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081020035949/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1597139/20081015/west_kanye.jhtml |archive-date=2008-10-20 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2009 the Black Eyed Peas' number-one hit "Boom Boom Pow", made heavy use of AutoTune on their vocals to create a futuristic sound.<ref name="Pitchfork" /> AutoTune in hip-hop resurged in the mid-2010s, especially in trap music. Future and Young Thug are considered to the pioneers of modern trap music and have mentored or inspired artists such as Lil Baby, Gunna, Playboi Carti, Travis Scott, and Lil Uzi Vert.<ref name="Pitchfork" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/A2259112 |title=Pop |last1=Warwick |first1=Jacqueline |website=Oxford Music Online |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=21 July 2015 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
AutoTune is popular in raï music and other Northern Africa genres.<ref>{{cite web|last=Clayton|first=Jace|url=http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/pitch_perfect/|title=Pitch Perfect|publisher=Frieze|date=May 2009|access-date=2014-09-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141009211731/http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/pitch_perfect/|archive-date=2014-10-09|url-status=dead}}</ref> According to the ''Boston Herald'', the country singers Faith Hill, Shania Twain, and Tim McGraw use AutoTune in performance, calling it a safety net that guarantees a good performance.<ref>Treacy, Christopher John. "Pitch-adjusting software brings studio tricks," ''The Boston Herald'', February 19, 2007, Monday, "The Edge" p. 32.</ref> However, country singers such as Allison Moorer,<ref>{{cite web|last=Fitzmaurice|first=Larry|title=Great Moments In AutoTune History|publisher=Vulture|date=14 December 2018|url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/12/great-moments-in-auto-tune-history.html|access-date=31 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731051002/https://www.vulture.com/2018/12/great-moments-in-auto-tune-history.html|archive-date=31 July 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Garth Brooks,<ref>{{cite web|last=Markey|first=MaKayla|title=Garth Against the Machine|publisher=Country Music Project|date=13 November 2014|url=https://sites.dwrl.utexas.edu/countrymusic/2014/11/13/2414/|access-date=31 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731051004/https://sites.dwrl.utexas.edu/countrymusic/2014/11/13/2414/|archive-date=31 July 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Big & Rich, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill and Martina McBride have refused to use AutoTune.<ref>{{cite web|last=Vinson|first=Christina|title=Big & Rich Not Concerned About Perfection|publisher=Taste of Country|date=26 November 2013|url=https://tasteofcountry.com/big-rich-auto-tuning/|access-date=31 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731051002/https://tasteofcountry.com/big-rich-auto-tuning/|archive-date=31 July 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Reception== ===Positive=== Some critics have argued that AutoTune opens up new possibilities in pop music, especially in hip-hop and R&B. Instead of using it as a correction tool for poor vocals—its original purpose—some musicians intentionally use the technology to mediate and augment their artistic expression. When the electronic duo Daft Punk was asked about their use of AutoTune in their single "One More Time", Thomas Bangalter replied, "A lot of people complain about musicians using AutoTune. It reminds me of the late '70s when musicians in France tried to ban the synthesizer... They didn't see that you could use those tools in a new way instead of just for replacing the instruments that came before."<ref name="Robopop">{{cite web |last=Gill |first=Chris |date=2001-05-01 |title=ROBOPOP |url=http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_robopop/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060103075925/http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_robopop/ |archive-date=January 3, 2006 |access-date=2014-10-06 |publisher=Remix}}</ref>
T-Pain, the R&B singer and rapper who reintroduced the use of AutoTune as a vocal effect in pop music with his album ''Rappa Ternt Sanga'' in 2005, said, "My dad always told me that anyone's voice is just another instrument added to the music. There was a time when people had seven-minute songs, and five minutes were just straight instrumental. ... I got a lot of influence from [the '60s era]. I thought I might as well turn my voice into a saxophone."<ref>{{cite web |author=Zachary Sniderman |date=2011-12-06 |title=T-Pain Talks Autotune, Apps and the Future of Music |url=http://mashable.com/2011/12/06/t-pain-autotune/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131108061014/http://mashable.com/2011/12/06/t-pain-autotune/ |archive-date=2013-11-08 |access-date=2013-11-14 |publisher=Mashable.com}}</ref> Following in T-Pain's footsteps, Lil Wayne experimented with AutoTune between his albums ''Tha Carter II'' and ''Tha Carter III''. At the time, he was heavily addicted to promethazine codeine, and some critics see AutoTune as a musical expression of Wayne's loneliness and depression.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 22, 2013 |title=Twitter / noz: @YoPendleton @newbornrodeo |url=https://twitter.com/noz/status/305145147853787137 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216203713/https://twitter.com/noz/status/305145147853787137 |archive-date=December 16, 2013 |access-date=2013-11-14 |publisher=Twitter.com}}</ref> Mark Anthony Neal wrote that Lil Wayne's vocal uniqueness, his "slurs, blurs, bleeps and blushes of his vocals, index some variety of trauma."<ref>{{cite web |date=October 8, 2008 |title=A Love Supreme? |url=http://www.seeingblack.com/printer_522.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213004836/http://www.seeingblack.com/printer_522.shtml |archive-date=December 13, 2013 |access-date=2013-11-14 |publisher=Seeingblack.com}}</ref> And Kevin Driscoll asks, "Is AutoTune not the wah pedal of today's black pop? Before he transformed himself into T-Wayne on "Lollipop", Wayne's pop presence was limited to guest verses and unauthorized freestyles. In the same way that Miles equipped Hendrix to stay pop-relevant, Wayne's flirtation with the VST plugin du jour brought him updial from JAMN 94.5 to KISS 108."<ref>{{cite web |date=2008-08-07 |title=todo mundo » Blog Archive » Is that Lil Twane on the keytar? |url=http://www.kevindriscoll.info/todomundo/2008/08/07/is-that-lil-twane-on-the-keytar/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209210235/http://www.kevindriscoll.info/todomundo/2008/08/07/is-that-lil-twane-on-the-keytar/ |archive-date=2013-12-09 |access-date=2013-11-14 |publisher=Kevindriscoll.info}}</ref>
Kanye West's ''808s & Heartbreak'' was generally well received by critics, and it similarly used AutoTune to represent a fragmented soul following his mother's death.<ref>{{cite web |date=November 25, 2008 |title=808s & Heartbreak Reviews |url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/808s-heartbreak/kanye-west |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215022457/http://www.metacritic.com/music/808s-heartbreak/kanye-west |archive-date=December 15, 2012 |access-date=2013-11-14 |publisher=Metacritic}}</ref> The album marks a departure from his previous album, ''Graduation''. Describing the album as a breakup album, ''Rolling Stone'' music critic Jody Rosen wrote, "Kanye can't really sing in the classic sense, but he's not trying to. T-Pain taught the world that AutoTune doesn't just sharpen flat notes: It's a painterly device for enhancing vocal expressiveness and upping the pathos ... Kanye's digitized vocals are the sound of a man so stupefied by grief, he's become less than human."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Rosen |first1=Joden |date=11 December 2008 |title=808s & Heartbreak |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/808s-heartbreak-20081211 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170325104759/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/808s-heartbreak-20081211 |archive-date=March 25, 2017 |access-date=August 10, 2015 |magazine=Rolling Stone |publisher=}}</ref>
YouTuber Conor Maynard, who was criticised for his use of AutoTune, defended it in an interview on the ''Zach Sang Show'' in 2019, stating: "It doesn't mean you can't sing ... AutoTune can't make anyone who can't sing sound like they can sing ... It just tightens it up slightly because we're human and not perfect, whereas [AutoTune] is literally digitally perfect."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Conor Maynard Talks Hate How Much I Love You, Using AutoTune, James Charles & Caspar Lee |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPagDKvBGls |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200112231559/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPagDKvBGls |archive-date=2020-01-12 |access-date=2020-05-19 |website=YouTube| date=July 19, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Conor Maynard on AutoTune & Why Artists Use It | date=July 22, 2019 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeORyL_ZAlI |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/QeORyL_ZAlI |archive-date=2021-12-21 |via=www.youtube.com}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ===Negative{{anchor|Artist backlash}}=== At the 51st Grammy Awards in 2009, the band Death Cab for Cutie made an appearance wearing blue ribbons to protest the use of AutoTune.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1604710/death-cab-for-cutie-raise-awareness-about-auto-tune-abuse/|title=Death Cab For Cutie Raise Awareness About Auto-Tune Abuse|date=2009-02-10|access-date=28 November 2019|publisher=mtv.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731051019/http://www.mtv.com/news/1604710/death-cab-for-cutie-raise-awareness-about-auto-tune-abuse/|archive-date=31 July 2019}}</ref> Later that year, Jay-Z released the single "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)". Jay-Z said he felt Auto-Tune had become a gimmick that was too widely used.<ref name="Hot 97 Premiere">{{cite web|last=Reid|first=Shaheem|title=Jay-Z Premiers New Song, 'D.O.A.': 'Death Of Auto-Tune'|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1613390/20090606/jay_z.jhtml|work=MTV|date=2009-06-06|access-date=21 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090627025430/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1613390/20090606/jay_z.jhtml|archive-date=27 June 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Reid, Shaheem|title=Jay-Z Blames Wendy's Commercial—Partially—For His 'Death Of Auto-Tune'|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1613694/20090610/jay_z.jhtml|date=2009-06-10|work=MTV|publisher=MTV Networks|access-date=10 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090613021555/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1613694/20090610/jay_z.jhtml|archive-date=13 June 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Christina Aguilera appeared in public in Los Angeles on August 10, 2009, wearing a T-shirt that read "Auto Tune is for pussies". When interviewed by Sirius/XM, she said AutoTune could be used "in a creative way" and noted her song "Elastic Love" from ''Bionic'' uses it.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XWHSAQAAQBAJ&q=christina+aguilera+auto+tune+is+for+pussies&pg=PA165|title=The Oxford Handbook of Sound and Image in Digital Media|first1=Carol|last1=Vernallis|first2=Amy|last2=Herzog|first3=John|last3=Richardson|date=8 August 2017|publisher=OUP USA|isbn=9780199757640|access-date=8 August 2017|via=Google Books|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502001932/https://books.google.com/books?id=XWHSAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA165&lpg=PA165&dq=christina+aguilera+auto+tune+is+for+pussies&source=bl&ots=pvISBP4fX2&sig=F2bjNA3R4zu59UY00S66YfT-C7o&hl=en&sa=X&ei=KYGYUuPFJumSiAfjoIDQCA&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBDgK#v=onepage&q=christina+aguilera+auto+tune+is+for+pussies&f=false|archive-date=2 May 2018}}</ref>
Opponents have argued that AutoTune has a negative effect on the perception and consumption of music. In 2004, the ''Daily Telegraph'' critic Neil McCormick called AutoTune a "particularly sinister invention".<ref name="TheAge">{{cite news|title=The truth about lip-synching|url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/10/12/1097406567855.html|date=2004-10-13|access-date=25 April 2010|last=McCormick|first=Neil|location=Melbourne|work=The Age|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115020027/http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/10/12/1097406567855.html|archive-date=15 January 2010}}</ref> In 2006, the singer-songwriter Neko Case said a studio employee once told her that she and Nelly Furtado were the only singers who had never used it in his studio. Case said "it's cool that she has some integrity".<ref>{{cite web |author=Ryan Dombal |date=2006-04-10 |title=Interview: Neko Case |url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/31252-interview-neko-case |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070501002800/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/31252-interview-neko-case |archive-date=1 May 2007 |access-date=15 September 2008 |publisher=Pitchfork Media}}</ref>
In 2009, ''Time'' quoted an unidentified Grammy-winning recording engineer: "Let's just say I've had AutoTune save vocals on everything from Britney Spears to Bollywood cast albums. And every singer now presumes that you'll just run their voice through the box." The same article expressed "hope that pop's fetish for uniform perfect pitch will fade", speculating that pop songs had become harder to differentiate, as "track after track has perfect pitch".<ref>Tyrangiel, Josh, "[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1877372-2,00.html Singer's Little Helper] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210130008/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1877372-2,00.html |date=2009-02-10 }}," ''Time'', 5 February 2009.</ref> According to Tom Lord-Alge in 2009, AutoTune was used on nearly every modern record.<ref name="Milner">Milner, Greg (2009). ''Perfecting Sound Forever'', p. 343. Faber and Faber. Cited in Hodgson (2010), p. 232.</ref> In 2009, the producer Rick Rubin wrote that "Right now, if you listen to pop, everything is in perfect pitch, perfect time and perfect tune. That's how ubiquitous AutoTune is."<ref name="time2">{{cite news|last=Tyrangiel|first=Josh|title=Auto-Tune: Why Pop Music Sounds Perfect|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1877372,00.html|magazine=Time|access-date=23 October 2012|date=5 February 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023021402/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1877372,00.html|archive-date=23 October 2012}}</ref> In 2010, the reality TV show ''The X Factor'' admitted to using AutoTune to improve the voices of contestants.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11056050|title=X Factor admits tweaking vocals|work=BBC News|date=23 August 2010|access-date=8 August 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170925124351/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11056050|archive-date=25 September 2017}}</ref> ''Time'' included AutoTune in its list of "the 50 worst inventions",<ref>{{Cite web |title=The 50 worst inventions |url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1991915,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131008171951/https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1991915,00.html |archive-date=8 October 2013 |access-date=2026-05-23 |website=Time |language=en-us}}</ref> and the ''Time'' journalist Josh Tyrangiel called Auto-Tune "Photoshop for the human voice".<ref name="time2" />
AutoTune has been criticized as indicative of an inability to sing on key.<ref name="upvenue">{{cite web |title=Auto-Tune or How Anyone Can Sing |url=http://www.upvenue.com/music-news/blog-headline/1091/tuym-auto-tune-or-how-anyone-can-sing.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130129035312/http://www.upvenue.com/music-news/blog-headline/1091/tuym-auto-tune-or-how-anyone-can-sing.html |archive-date=29 January 2013 |access-date=23 October 2012 |work=Up Venue}}</ref><ref name="stuff">{{cite web|last=Anderson|first=Vicki|title=Those who can't sing use auto-tune|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/3812583/Those-who-can-t-sing-use-auto-tune|work=Stuff.co.nz|date=14 June 2010|access-date=23 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612170034/http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/3812583/Those-who-can-t-sing-use-auto-tune|archive-date=12 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Williams|first=Andrew|title=Danny O'Donoghue: I hate Auto-Tune, it's for people who can't sing|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/858783-danny-odonoghue-i-hate-auto-tune-its-for-people-who-cant-sing|work=Metro|date=22 March 2011|publisher=Associated Newspapers Ltd|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102092321/http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/858783-danny-odonoghue-i-hate-auto-tune-its-for-people-who-cant-sing|archive-date=2 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Britney unplugged: Can Spears (actually) sing without 'Auto-Tune'?|url=http://music.msn.com/music/article.aspx?news=659325|work=MSN|publisher=Microsoft|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111228015711/http://music.msn.com/music/article.aspx?news=659325|archive-date=28 December 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Auto-Tune (Documentary)|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/auto-tune.html|work=NOVA|publisher=PBS|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121029112430/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/auto-tune.html|archive-date=29 October 2012}}</ref> Trey Parker used it on the ''South Park'' song "Gay Fish", and found that he had to sing off-key to sound distorted. He said, "You had to be a bad singer in order for that thing to actually sound the way it does. If you use it and sing into it correctly, it doesn't do anything to your voice."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4EGYmyC4m4 |title=Trey Parker on Auto-Tuning |website=YouTube |date=April 13, 2011 |access-date=15 January 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140605200057/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4EGYmyC4m4 |archive-date=5 June 2014 }}</ref> The singer Kesha has used AutoTune extensively, putting her vocal talent under scrutiny.<ref name="stuff" /><ref>{{cite news|last=Reed|first=James|title=The pop star we love to hate|url=http://archive.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2011/04/08/james_reed_explains_why_keha_is_the_pop_star_we_love_to_hate/|work=The Boston Globe|date=8 April 2011|publisher=NY Times Co|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131211175243/https://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2011/04/08/james_reed_explains_why_keha_is_the_pop_star_we_love_to_hate/?page=2|archive-date=11 December 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Adickman|first=Erika Brooke|title=OMG! Ke$ha Admits To Using AutoTune|url=http://idolator.com/5921542/kesha-team-coco-auto-tune|work=Idolator|date=30 June 2011|publisher=Buzz Media|access-date=23 October 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130126105457/http://idolator.com/5921542/kesha-team-coco-auto-tune|archive-date=26 January 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=I can sing without Auto-Tune- Kesha|url=http://bigpondnews.com/articles/Entertainment/2012/10/18/I_can_sing_without_Auto-Tune-_Kesha_807243.html|work=BigPond|publisher=Telstra|access-date=23 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Bosker|first=Bianca|title=Ke$ha Claims Not To Use Autotune (VIDEO): Does She Or Doesn't She?|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/10/keha-autotune-video-star_n_570712.html|work=The Huffington Post|publisher=AOL|access-date=23 October 2012|date=10 May 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120823100503/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/10/keha-autotune-video-star_n_570712.html|archive-date=23 August 2012}}</ref> The big band singer Michael Bublé criticized AutoTune as making everyone sound the same – "like robots" – but said he used it when recording pop music.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.3news.co.nz/Buble-Auto-Tune-is-overused/tabid/418/articleID/292609/Default.aspx|work=3 News NZ|title=Buble: Auto-Tune is 'overused'|date=April 2, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107032757/http://www.3news.co.nz/Buble-Auto-Tune-is-overused/tabid/418/articleID/292609/Default.aspx|archive-date=January 7, 2014}}</ref>
Ellie Goulding and Ed Sheeran joined the "Live Means Live" campaign, launched by the songwriter David Mindel in 2014. Participating acts display a "Live Means Live" logo, guaranteeing to the audience that they are not using AutoTune or backing tracks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/live-ish-at-a-venue-near-you-are-miming-rock-stars-undermining-the-music-experience-9920527.html |title=Live (ish) at a venue near you: Are miming rock stars undermining the music experience?: The rock band that plays completely live, with no pre-recorded backing tracks or extended samples, is becoming rarer and rarer |last=Hardeman |first=Simon |date=12 December 2014 |website=The Independent |access-date=29 June 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171005050625/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/live-ish-at-a-venue-near-you-are-miming-rock-stars-undermining-the-music-experience-9920527.html |archive-date=5 October 2017 }}</ref> In 2023, multiple creators on the social media platform TikTok were accused of using AutoTune in post-production to correct the pitch of singing videos presented to appear as live, casual performances.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Crimmins |first1=Tricia |title=Those impressive TikTok singing videos might not be for real |url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/tiktok-singers-autotune/ |website=The Daily Dot |date=November 22, 2023 |access-date=20 March 2024}}</ref> Asked if AutoTune was "evil", Hildebrand responded: "Well, my wife wears makeup. Is that evil?"<ref name="newyorker" />
== Impact and parodies == The US TV comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' parodied AutoTune using the fictional white rapper Blizzard Man, who sang in a sketch: "Robot voice, robot voice! All the kids love the robot voice!"<ref>{{cite web |url=https://screen.yahoo.com/blizzard-man-2-000000059.html |title=Blizzard Man 2 | Saturday Night Live - Yahoo Screen |access-date=2014-03-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330143016/https://screen.yahoo.com/blizzard-man-2-000000059.html |archive-date=2014-03-30 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://snltranscripts.jt.org/08/08iblizzard.phtml|title=SNL Transcripts: Tim McGraw: 11/22/08: Blizzard Man|website=snltranscripts.jt.org|access-date=8 August 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170702224007/http://snltranscripts.jt.org/08/08iblizzard.phtml|archive-date=2 July 2017}}</ref>
Satirist "Weird Al" Yankovic poked fun at the overuse of AutoTune, while commenting that it seemed here to stay, in a YouTube video commented on by various publications such as ''Wired''.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.wired.com/underwire/2009/11/will-auto-tune-ever-die-ask-know-your-meme-and-weird-al/ | magazine=Wired | first=Scott | last=Thill | title=Will Auto-Tune Die? Ask Know Your Meme and 'Weird Al' | date=16 November 2009 | url-status=live | archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20170309221508/https://www.wired.com/underwire/2009/11/will-auto-tune-ever-die-ask-know-your-meme-and-weird-al/ | archive-date=9 March 2017 }}</ref>
Starting in 2009, the use of AutoTune to create melodies from the audio in video newscasts was popularized by Brooklyn musician Michael Gregory, and later by the band the Gregory Brothers in their series ''Songify the News''. The Gregory Brothers digitally manipulated the recorded voices of politicians, news anchors, and political pundits to conform to a melody, making the figures appear to sing.<ref>[https://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/15/auto.tune.news.iphone/index.html "Band's Parody Helps Keep Auto-Tune Alive"]. [https://edition.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/15/auto.tune.news.iphone/], John D. Sutter, ''Time'', September 2009</ref><ref>[http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1893867,00.html "Auto-Tune the News"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100315032856/http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1893867,00.html |date=2010-03-15 }}, Claire Suddath, ''Time'', April 2009</ref> The group achieved mainstream success with their "Bed Intruder Song" video, which became the most-watched YouTube video of 2010.<ref>[http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/double-rainbows-annoying-oranges-and.html "Double rainbows, annoying oranges, and bed intruders: the year on YouTube"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223211440/http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/double-rainbows-annoying-oranges-and.html |date=2010-12-23 }} YouTube Blog, Dec 2010</ref>
''The Simpsons'' season 12 episode 14, "New Kids on the Blecch", satirizes the use of AutoTune. In 2014, during season 18 of the animated show ''South Park'', the character Randy Marsh uses AutoTune software to make the singing voice of Lorde. In episode 3, "The Cissy", Randy shows his son Stan how he does it on his computer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fashionnstyle.com/articles/47957/20150221/sia-confirms-involvement-south-park-lorde-parody-chandelier-singer-figured-royals-artist-would-find-funny.htm|title=Sia Confirms Involvement In 'South Park' Lorde Parody, 'Chandelier' Singer Figured 'Royals' Artist Would 'Find It Funny' |date=February 21, 2015 |last=Heggs |first=Melanie |publisher=Fashion & Style |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160425123429/http://www.fashionnstyle.com/articles/47957/20150221/sia-confirms-involvement-south-park-lorde-parody-chandelier-singer-figured-royals-artist-would-find-funny.htm |archive-date=April 25, 2016}}</ref> == See also == * Audio time stretching and pitch scaling * Melodyne, a similar product * Overproduction (music) * Robotic voice effects
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070501002800/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/31252-interview-neko-case |archive-date=2007-05-01 |url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/31252-interview-neko-case |title=Interview: Neko Case |publisher=Pitchfork |date=2006-04-10 |author=Ryan Dombal}} Artistic integrity and Auto-Tune * CBC Radio One ''Q'': [http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/pastpodcasts.html?42#ref42 The Podcast for Thursday June 25, 2009] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20120316203801/http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/qpodcast_20090625_17492.mp3 MP3])—NPR's Tom Moon on the takeover of the Auto-Tune. * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090611084512/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/0401/03.html "Auto-Tune"], ''NOVA scienceNOW'', PBS TV, June 30, 2009 * [https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/andy-hildebrand Andy Hildebrand Interview] at NAMM Oral History Collection (2012)
{{Music technology}}
Category:Music controversies Category:1990s in music Category:2000s in music Category:2010s in music Category:Audiovisual introductions in 1997 Category:Effects units Category:Pitch modification software