Think back to this week. When was the last time you listened to a song that used a real instrument? From the use of vocal enhancers to the termination of real musical instruments in songs, our aspect of what true music is has been completely altered.

According to BBC, over 90 percent of artists producing today are using some form of Autotune. Is this cheating? By using a vocal enhancement such as Autotune, singers are allowed to easily change their music for the better. This technology, therefore, leads the artists to not have to work as hard. Knowing that anything can be changed with (literally) the click of a button, requires them to supply less effort and less talent.

The use of electronically produced sounds has also overtaken the world of music today. The use of instruments such as the guitar, bass, drum, or any brass instrument has almost entirely plummeted over the last fifteen years.  Recently, new genres of music such as dubstep and electronic have emerged and become popular, especially among young adults. However, the sounds used to produce these styles of music sound very synthetic or “electronically influenced” compared to those made by “real” instruments. The downward trend in the usage of instruments once again decreases the need for talent when it comes to the music industry.

With the use of new technology such as electronic soundboards and vocal enhancers, music is becoming more and more artificial. The digital age, as we know it, has completely changed the world’s aspect of what real music is.