Why This AI-Made Song Challenges Everything Critics Say About Suno

The music industry's relationship with generative AI remains contentious, and Suno — a leading AI music generator — has drawn particular skepticism for churning out uninspired output. Yet 1010Benja's latest single suggests the technology's creative potential depends heavily on how it's wielded.

Released on his new EP Time Has Nothing To Do With What You Choose…, "Semiramis' Dream" opens with a propulsive jungle rhythm and Benja's distinctive vocal performance. The track avoids many telltale AI signatures; even its choir elements blend seamlessly into hyperpop-inflected vocal layering that's become conventional across contemporary pop music.

A Transparent Workflow#

Rather than obscuring his methods, Benja has been forthright about deploying AI as part of a collaborative process. According to an interview with Hearing Things, the track began with a beat from collaborator Patrick Holder, Benja's own vocal recordings, and iterative refinement: feeding material into Suno, extracting results, editing in Ableton, layering additional elements, and cycling back through the AI tool repeatedly. The artist estimates he cycled through this loop roughly a hundred times to achieve the final version.

This stands in sharp contrast to purely generative work. Benja authored the lyrics, performed the vocals, and guided the creative direction throughout—using AI as a production instrument rather than a replacement for artistic vision.

The Ethical Reckoning#

Benja acknowledges the technology's darker implications without evasion. He recognizes AI's environmental footprint and the broader industry harms it enables, though he frames corporate resistance as futile. His decision to use generative tools stems from practical necessity: as a struggling artist who has experienced homelessness despite critical acclaim for his 2024 album Ten Total, he cannot afford to hire session musicians or professional vocalists. "I haven't paid rent last month, and I won't pay rent this month," he tells the interviewer.

What It Proves and What It Doesn't#

Whether Suno was truly necessary for "Semiramis' Dream" remains debatable. The synthetic choir effect it produces is competent but hardly indispensable—skillful vocal layering and processing could yield comparable results without algorithmic assistance. Yet the track succeeds where much AI-generated music fails: it sounds intentional, cohesive, and emotionally engaging rather than algorithmically generated filler.