Nile Rodgers recently shared a snippet of his upcoming video for a new version of “The Christmas Song,” his 2020 charity collaboration with Rebecca Ferguson, proudly revealing it used AI, which fans took issue with. On Thursday, he defended his use of the technology.
Earlier this week, he shared an “AI capture” of the project. “#working on a #great #art project that’s next #level. This is the start of the process. This AI capture was very thorough and I’m so excited about the finished project,” he wrote. “When I saw the Eagles at The Sphere in Vegas I envisioned stories with incredible environments & music. It’s future time!”
Shortly afterward, however, people began commenting on their disappointment with him using AI. One person wrote in the IG comments, “There’s better way to preserve your legacy.” Rodgers responded, “Wait to you see it before you make judgement. You’re imagining the worst instead of imagining the best.” The person responded back: “I don’t have to imagine my friend, look what AI has done to art in general yet alone music. Promoting it in such a big way is not the way to go.”
On Wednesday, Rodgers shared photo stills from the project, and the backlash continued. “We need happiness and healing in our world,” he captioned the carousel. “When I had my 1st bought of #cancer it was a child who coached me and gave me #courage to fight. I know a lot of children who are bedridden and ill. Their main form of entertainment is the iPad or other such devices. I produced ‘The Christmas Song’ to give them a little #joy during the holiday season.”
He added: “We gave the #video a fun twist on the story line…and in the process expanded a new creative family for me. Over the next few weeks while we finish this video I’ll show bits and pieces while we rush to get it ready by November 20. Peace, love, and good health for the holidays.”
Several commenters on his post from Wednesday took him to task for using generative AI as well. Rodgers defended its use, telling one commenter: “We created everything. Mood boards, story boards and did it the same way we’d do a film. The AI did what we told it to do and we painstakingly created every second you’ll see on the screen… If this were a traditional film it would’ve cost about $100,000.”
Rodgers told another commenter that “it’s somewhat hypocritical to say you’re anti AI and you’re using it all the time because it makes your life convenient,” he wrote. “I used to work with Microsoft and Apple. I’m very aware of the things they do when they have new tech that consumers like yourself adopt its usage. Love to you. I respect all opinions.”
Rodgers has previously shown support for AI. In 2024, he told Euronews, “So, I think using AI-generated vocals to copy another person’s sound is horrible, but using AI to artistically express yourself and make better music, I think, is fantastic. The way I want to look at AI is from the positive side. I want to look at it as just another color on your palette,” he said, likening it to other tools. He cited how when drum machines and synthesizers first came out, people were saying it “wasn’t real music,” and how auto-tune helped shape the pop landscape. “I think that creativity comes from the artist. Now, if you have a tool to help you become more creative, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
