In a recent conversation on The Music Podcast, renowned singer Arijit Singh discussed the impact of auto-tune in the Indian music industry, attributing its introduction to AR Rahman. Singh mentioned that AR Rahman initially employed auto-tune subtly, enhancing the vocals of various singers and making them sound more melodious.
Singh highlighted the evolving dynamics and mentioned that Rahman himself no longer uses auto-tune. He emphasized that auto-tune cannot transform a non-singer into a singer and explained, “When people really liked to listen to Rahman’s songs, it was him actually who started using auto-tune in a very subtle way. That’s how a lot of singers started sounding beautiful.”
Discussing the emotional aspect of singing, Singh added, “When a singer sings, they sing with emotion. And when they sing with emotion, it is never perfect, they go away from the sur (tune) a little bit, most singers except Sonu Nigam, he can’t go out of tune I feel.”
Singh acknowledged that some music composers, including Mithoon Sharma and Vishal Bhardwaj, dislike auto-tune. He also mentioned that AR Rahman has moved away from using it, and Pritam’s music often incorporates auto-tune to enhance its sound quality.
Arijit Singh, known for his soulful renditions, rose to fame with hits like “Tum Hi Ho” and “Chahun Main Ya Naa.” His latest song is “Lutt Putt Gaya” from Shah Rukh Khan’s film “Dunki,” directed by Rajkumar Hirani.
