Zac Brown Band member talks AI music and ALS diagnosis

John Driskell Hopkins' nonprofit raises funds for underfunded ALS research
He was diagnosed with ALS in 2021 but still performs with his band
AI may help uncover causes behind rising ALS cases like his

Updated: Jun 10, 2024 / 04:44 PM CDT

(NewsNation) — John Driskell Hopkins, a founding member of the Zac Brown Band diagnosed with ALS in 2021, expressed concerns about the growing influence of artificial intelligence (AI) in the music industry during a Sunday interview on “NewsNation Prime.”

NewsNation played for Hopkins two AI country songs, each of which took 15 seconds to generate.

Hopkins said he was surprised by the quality but worried that AI music could eventually replace human musicians if the technology continues improving.

“I will be more concerned when the songwriting gets better. But that wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it was gonna be,” Hopkins said. He hopes live performances will remain superior to AI recordings.

The 53-year-old has had to adjust his guitar playing due to ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease, but continues performing and singing with the band.

Hopkins and his wife Jennifer co-founded the nonprofit Hop on a Cure, which has raised millions for ALS research. He cited projections of a 70% increase in ALS cases by 2040 and said the causes behind dying motor neurons remain a mystery.

“If AI is good for anything, maybe it can help us with that,” Hopkins said of finding answers about ALS.

Despite awareness raised by the Ice Bucket Challenge, Hopkins said ALS remains significantly underfunded compared to other diseases. He hopes drawing more attention to the disease’s growing prevalence will spur progress.