The untimely death in 1982 of one of Brazil’s most respected musicians shocked his homeland. Brazil without Elis, mourned on the front pages after the sudden death of legendary singer Elis Regina at the age of 36.
So when Elis Regina resurfaced recently, performing an emotional duet with her daughter, Grammy-winning singer Maria Rita, there were equally charged scenes of catharsis and nostalgia.
It’s seven-something in the morning and I’m screaming at the top of my lungs tweeted Brazil’s first lady, Rosngela Lula da Silva, one of millions of Brazilians moved to tears by the performance.
The collaboration created by artificial intelligence, which required more than 2,400 hours of production and was made for a commercial celebrating the 70th birthday of Volkswagen in Brazil, has also sparked a passionate debate on the ethics of artificial intelligence and about its impact on the music industry and society as a whole.
Newspapers and social media have been filled with unease and in some cases outrage over a screen revival that Elis Regina Carvalho Costa, who died more than four decades ago, could not have approved herself. Some critics have pointed out that the singer, commonly known as Elis, had been a staunch opponent of the 1964-85 Brazilian military dictatorship, a regime with which Volkswagen famously collaborated.
This week, the Brazilian advertising watchdog, Conar, announced it would be investigating a possible ethics violation after receiving complaints questioning whether it was okay to use such methods to bring a deceased on-screen person back to life.
Questions have been raised about the fact [the use of such techniques] it could lead some to confuse fiction with reality, especially children and adolescents, Conar said, promising a sentence in about 45 days.
Volkswagen defended its viral campaign, in which the face of a female stunt double who played Elis was altered with facial recognition software to give the impression that the singer was performing. The idea was to use artificial intelligence to create a unique moment that brings together one of the greatest singers in the history of Brazilian music and her daughter Maria Rita, a contemporary icon, the company said, adding that the production had the blessing of the family singers.
Speaking to the Guardian, Eliss’ eldest son, music producer Joo Marcello Bscoli, hailed the discussion his mother’s reappearance had sparked and how the ad had revealed a more emotional, playful and artistic side to a technology more often associated with to fake news and memes.
Elis has provoked a debate about the future despite physically passing away over 40 years ago. I can’t think of anyone in Brazil other than Elis who could have caused this, he said.
Bscoli, who was 11 when her mother died, described her emotional reaction to seeing her deepfake renaissance just days before the commercial aired. For a second I allowed myself to embark on this fantasy of my mother singing with a daughter who lost her mother when she was four years old. It’s something really moving even when she’s in an ad campaign, she said.
Why did this campaign move people? Bscoli added. Because he brought them face to face with Elis. And almost anyone who listens to Elis Regina is also moved when she is through a mask of artificial intelligence. This is the power of great music: emotions, feelings and ideas.
Elis Regina/Maria Rita’s rendition of one of the most celebrated early recordings, the dictatorship-era anthem Como Nossos Pais, is not the first time a Brazilian artist has performed alongside a deceased relative. Daniel Gonzaga, the son of singer Gonzaguinha, who died in 1991 at the age of 45, once performed a heartbreaking version of one of his father’s hits in which the pair sang together with the help of authentic archival footage from the dead artist.
Bscoli attributed the controversy over her mother’s appearance to trepidation over the type of technology being used, which she predicted would soon become an almost invisible presence in our lives, such as our water, gas or electricity supply.
If they had used an Elis lookalike, no one would have said anything. If she had been a cartoon of Elis, no one would have said anything. If she had been a woman who looked completely like Elis, no one would have said anything.
He preferred to leave more in-depth analyzes of the impact that AI will have on the human species to the experts. But in introducing the greatest singer of all time to a new generation of Brazilian fans, Bscoli saw the publicity as a triumph. In the 10 days since it first aired, the YouTube version has been viewed more than 16 million times. Elis Regina’s songs have been streamed more than 20 million times.
Bscoli hoped that foreign music lovers who had yet to discover his mother’s inimitable voice would follow in their footsteps.
Elis Regina is one of the last undiscovered treasures of the 20th century for the world to discover and it’s just a click away, she said of her mother, who would be 78 today.
Listen to it, because you will like it and it will move you.
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