When creating his latest single “Go,” super-producer Alex Da Kid didn’t take the conventional approach.
The London native had enlisted singer-songwriter H.E.R. to supply the vocals; but he wanted to find another artist who would compliment H.E.R.’s soulful sound. So, he used Spotify and IBM technology to assist in his search.
According to Republic Records, Alex bypassed the old-school A&R methods during the hunt, and instead utilized AI technology, Watson. The custom program “learned the language of music from the producer’s natural speech,” and analyzed Spotify’s data—including social media posts, interviews, and fan sentiment—to identify the artist who would be the best fit for “Go.”
The tech-driven search led Alex to North Carolina MC Rapsody. And, we have to admit, the selection was a pretty solid. You can add this track to Rapsody's solid catalog, which includes Laila's Wisdom. Released as her second studio album—and first with Roc Nation—Laila's Wisdom pulled in two 2018 Grammy nominations for Rapsody: Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song for "Sassy." She would end up losing both categories to Kendrick Lamar, but you can't deny the much-deserved recognition she received from the performance.
Over his career, Alex Da Kid has a played a key role in the production of several major hits, including ones with Eminem, Imagine Dragons, and the Suicide Squad soundtrack single "Sucker for Pain."
You can listen to “Go” now on Apple Music/iTunes. Republic Records says the song is the first in a series centered around the Watson Artist Discovery Tool.
