Adrian Smith of Iron Maiden has made his position on artificial intelligence in music crystal clear: he wants nothing to do with it.
In a recent interview with Argentina’s UnDinamo – La Última Radio De Rock, the guitarist was asked about AI as a compositional tool and held nothing back (via Blabbermouth): “No, I don’t like it. I don’t like it. I mean, people seem to be craving more reward with less effort. I think part of the enjoyment and the fun is the journey of getting there, the process, and the struggle. It makes you feel good when you get it. If someone just gives you something, it’s all finished and done.”
He also tied it back to what he and Richie Kotzen do under the Smith/Kotzen banner: “And I think from our point of view, the albums that Richie and I do are pretty organic. There are no loads of overdubs. It’s just two guitars [and our] voices. A few overdubs, of course, but we try to keep it organic, keep the human feel.”
Smith also took a shot at bands leaning on backing tracks live: “A.I., it just makes me shiver. And when you hear about bands canceling gigs, ’cause they’ve lost their laptop computer — I mean, come on.”
When asked whether AI poses a threat to younger musicians trying to break through, Smith pointed to a broader problem with how the industry has shifted: “The record industry is dying on its ass because of music streaming. People aren’t getting paid or can’t earn any money out of music. Sure, you can make an album on your computer, and anyone can make an album, so it’s kind of cheapened everything. There’s no struggle anymore. You used to have to save the money and work to buy an hour in the studio. It was so expensive.”
He kept going: “Yeah, it’s difficult for young bands now, difficult for young bands. I’m glad I was born when I was, because I got the best of both worlds. With Maiden, we can make the whole thing solvent by doing shows, but records are — it’s tragic. People expect it for nothing; they want music for nothing. They don’t wanna pay for it.”
This isn’t the first time Smith has sounded off on the topic. Last April, in an interview with Andrew McKaysmith of the Scars And Guitars podcast, he was equally blunt when asked if he’d ever use AI to write songs: “No way. I don’t know. I don’t even wanna think about it. I mean, A.I. What was it someone was telling me the other day? Somebody, as a birthday present or as a present to his friends, he had a song written by A.I. for each one of them, using their voice. And it’s just mind-boggling. It’s like the beginning of the end. I mean, social media’s bad enough. But this is just another level.”
Smith also drew a distinction between modern convenience tools and actual musicianship: “I can’t see it having any effect. I mean, even digital recording and Pro Tools now have enabled anyone to make up something that — you can present something that sounds respectable, but it’s all done by computers. At least I grew up old school, where you had to actually play in the studio; you couldn’t tune it up afterwards. So that makes you more of a craftsman. Digital recording we use because it’s convenient, and it saves time, and it saves money.”
He wrapped it up with a laugh: “A.I., man, I don’t know. [Laughs] I don’t know.”
On the music front, Smith/Kotzen‘s second album, Black Light/White Noise, came out via BMG in April 2025. The 10-track record was cut at The House in Los Angeles, produced by Adrian and Richie Kotzen, and mixed by Jay Ruston.