ILĀ is redefining the boundaries of music and technology with Murmur, their ground-breaking project in collaboration with Imogen Heap. Merging AI, vocal timbre transfer, and quantum computing, Murmur explores the intersection of identity, creativity, and sustainability.

In this exclusive interview, ILĀ dives into the inspirations behind the project, the emotional core of AI-driven artistry, and the profound questions it raises about the future of music. From the playful dynamics of working with AI to the environmental impact of emerging technologies, ILĀ’s visionary approach offers a fresh perspective on what it means to create in the digital age.

Nicolle: M Magazine describes murmur as “an exploration of new artistic boundaries.” How did the idea for merging AI with vocal timbre transfer tools come about, and what inspired you to pursue this unique sound collaboration?

ILĀ: Creatively speaking, I’m drawn to the places I’m scared of. I want to examine, feel into this ‘other’ - new intelligence. More specifically, I’m most curious about what we can learn about ourselves. In that sense I think AI can be a mirror unto ourselves. I try to think of it as a tool like any other. As artists, I feel we need to claim it and light the way as to how we want it to be used - and perhaps when we used it artistically, it can also allow more meaningful conversations about what ‘good ’ AI would look like for us more broadly. I wanted to explore how it can be used ethically and where the beauty lies in it. It does scare me - but that fear is also what drives me to understand it, and try and shape it.

Nicolle: AI tools play a major role in murmur. Could you walk us through how the AI process works in creating this hybrid sound? What does it feel like to “swap” qualities of your voices?

Put simply, tone transfer allows me to switch my voice out for someone else’s when I sing into a microphone. In the case of Murmur I switched out my voice for Imogen Heap’s and vice versa - creating hybrids of the two of us - which we then sculpted into different sounds we could use to build a piece of music together. In this sense, everything you hear was written by Imogen and I. I’d also say that this track took far longer to create than any other I’ve made - it was a real labour of love.

Nicolle: Imogen mentioned that AI felt like “a third collaborator, like a playful child.” How did this dynamic influence your creative approach, and did it lead to any unexpected discoveries?

ILĀ: It really was like having a playful child - an ‘other’. Hearing our voices swapped was surprisingly, otherworldly - playful - beautiful. I was surprised by how characterful they sounded - and how full of soul they were. It’s really changed how I hear myself now and I would say it’s even changed how I sing. When we stretched the voices, we found that there were these incredible airy rhythmic patterns hidden in them - almost flute like. We worked a lot with those textures. In fact, almost everything in the track except for maybe the kick and the bass is made from our voices.

Nicolle: You’ve said that the AI voice manipulation made you realize you could do things vocally that weren’t possible before. How has this experience changed your understanding of your own voice and creativity?

ILĀ: A dear friend of mine Reeps One is a phenomenal artist, vocalist and technologist - and he talks a lot about using AI as a second self in the form of a sparring partner or coach. It was amazing to get to work with a sample he sent me of his own tone transferred voice on the track ‘Confluence’ from the EP which also features Bishi. If your AI ‘other’ responds to something you sing, can you repeat or iterate on what it gives back?

It reminds me a lot of how my voice developed while I was working with Guy Sigsworth who also collaborated on the EP. He would edit together these incredibly airated phrases from my demos - creating these long arcs that I’d never normally sing in one breath. My task was then to re-sing them - and weirdly, hearing it allowed me to figure out how to actually do it. I feel I’m going on a similar journey with using AI voices. I think it’s also made me realise how incredibly complex and utterly unique our voices are.

Nicolle: With such a futuristic approach to music production, do you think AI might become a standard tool for artists in the future, or is this kind of collaboration something that only fits certain styles?

ILĀ: The first thing I’d say is that AI is not one thing. In its broadest sense, when it comes to music - AI is a boomer with the first AI-assisted composition being created by Hillier in the 50s. So on a practical level, there are already plenty of tools already in existence that help speed up the boring parts of music production so that more time can be spent on the creative elements. In that sense, my hope is if we focus on what ‘good’ AI would look like for us as artists - and lead the way with shaping it, we can help build a future where AI actually allows us to be more human. In this project, I used machine learning trained on datasets made of my own voice and the voices of those I had permission from with a very specific goal in mind.

This is a world apart from using an undifferentiated soup of stolen music and voices recordings from the internet like some of the less savoury AI music companies have been doing. When we were making Confluence, Bishi said to me ‘I think as humans we’ll always feel called to howl and moon and dance around fires’. That struck me as true. I sometimes wonder if in a few years, we’ll crave nothing more.

Nicolle: How did murmur’s environmental angle, through Earth/Percent, influence your creative process? What role does sustainability play in your music-making?

ILĀ: We need to better understand the impact of the huge increase in usage of AI on climate change - and so, when we talk about ethical AI, we need to include sustainability. The industry is incredibly opaque and that needs to change.

AI uses huge amounts of energy to train models and process large volumes of data, as well as large amounts of water for cooling. More recently, I’ve been working with Neutone - who are making some new tone transfer models for me using much smaller data sets. These are considerably ‘lighter’ and therefore considerably more sustainable - I’m also finding them to be a lot more agile, and creatively inspiring. Unfettered expansion of AI is and will continue to put huge demands on the grid. In a lot of ways I think it’s part of our nature to create and use tools.

Computers, AI, machines are among those tools - and are so part of our nature. The technology is here, and as much as it is terrifying - it may potentially also provide the tools we need to tackle climate change. What else are we going to use if not technology? However, this kind of thinking should not be used to justify greenwashing - and the boundless expansion of energy consumption to fuel AI. It ought to be sustainable from the get go - that’s our biggest challenge. I’m on the music committee at Earth/Percent and so it’s something that’s been on my mind a lot. Imogen and I decided to donate 20% of our publishing from Murmur to Earth/Percent - which will help fund conservation projects, but also help raise awareness and start some important conversations about AI music and sustainability.

Nicolle: Your upcoming EP and short film further expand on murmur’s themes. Can you share more about the vision behind this body of work and what fans can expect from the short film?

ILĀ: The film is called Murmur and features a really exciting non-human collaborator. I cannot wait to share more about her when the film comes out next year. I wanted to feel into what the rapid expansion of generative AI might tell us about who we are - what we might learn about our own consciousness - and whether it even exists in the way we think it does - but also how other emerging technologies like quantum computing challenge the binaries of man/woman, conscious / non-conscious, nature / non-nature, human/machine etc…

Nicolle: Murmur integrates personal identity, physics, and quantum data sonification into its sound. How do these themes shape the textures and moods within the song? Are there particular emotions or experiences you hope listeners will feel?

ILĀ: Emotions always come first. When I first started exploring these things in music, it was really important to me to avoid it becoming some kind of lecture - clever for the sake of being clever. Where there are vocals, I sang them in a very instinctive way - using the sounds and shapes that came to me in a sort of made up language. This felt really freeing because it let me speak in pure emotions rather than trying to find the words to communicate such impossible and complex ideas.

I wanted to get words out of the way, so I could focus on the really raw feelings underneath. In that sense the vocal practice feels kind of ancient - but within this context of textures built using tools like quantum computers and timbre transfer. It’s been incredible to work with Moth - who made Actias - a quantum computer music tool, I’ve been using a lot to create with. It’s pretty mindblowing for me on a personal level to finally be getting to combine my love of quantum physics with electronic music.

Nicolle: AI-driven art often raises questions about the role of the “human touch” in creativity. How do you balance this in murmur, and what does this blend of human and machine mean for the future of music and artistic expression?

ILĀ: Back in the 90s speaking about electronic music Bjõrk said "You can't blame the computer; If there's no soul in the music, it's because nobody put it there". I think this rings just as true with AI and other emerging technologies. It’s our job as human artists to bring our touch to our work. With Murmur that’s come naturally because everything is driven by the human voice.

Switching my tone onto someone else’s voice or vice versa merely expands the emotional range and potential for expression - the feelings are woven right into the core of it. I also think these new technologies are extensions of us - they’re our nature and can help us be more human - if we use them right and start focusing on what we want from them as artists and shaping them as tools for good.

As Murmur and its accompanying short film gear up for release, ILĀ continues to challenge the conventional, bridging ancient instincts with futuristic tools. Her work reminds us that technology, when wielded with intention and care, can deepen our humanity and open new doors for artistic expression. With Murmur paving the way for ethical, sustainable, and emotionally resonant AI-driven music, ILĀ is not only expanding what’s possible in sound but also sparking vital conversations for the future of creativity.

You can listen to Murmur here.

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Nicolle Knapova is a little bit of everything. She is a freelance translator, content creator. She loves indie music and is always browsing through Spotify to find the next amazing artist to obsess over. Her love for storytelling means she’s always writing something and she’s not afraid of any genre. Her biggest dream is to be a published author. If she’s not writing her fan fiction, she’s writing her poetry and sharing it on her Instagram @elisecaverly.

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