Timbaland signs AI "artist" with AI-sounding name, TaTa

Legendary producer Timbaland is getting in the slop and "producing systems, stories, and stars from scratch."

By Matt Schimkowitz | June 5, 2025 | 7:07pm

(Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for BWR Public Relations)

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In classic AI hype-cycle fashion, it’s been another week of people insisting AI is going great without showing their work. Sure, there’s that guy texting his chatbot girlfriend on the train and Natasha Lyonne torching her brand to bolster her AI company, but overall, we’re not seeing anything too impressive. Apparently, it’s easier to say AI is the future and a lot harder to prove it. Take Timbaland, for instance. Earlier today, he signed his first AI “artist” called TaTa from the AI entertainment company he launched, Stage Zero, with co-founders Rocky Mudaliar and Zayd Portillo. Isn’t it interesting that all the hype comes from people who own AI companies? Anyway, this is the beginning of a new genre that Timbaland calls “A-Pop,” and we call “power slop.”

In a statement, Timbaland said he’s “not just producing tracks anymore,” which is surprising, considering how much success he’s had producing tracks, but we digress. Instead, he’s producing “systems, stories, and stars from scratch,” e.g., using LLMs built off other artists’ music. “From scratch” means something to everyone; to Timbaland, it means using other people’s work. Nevertheless, he contends that TaTa “is not an avatar” nor “a character,” even though it is both. “TaTa is a living, learning, autonomous music artist built with AI,” Timbaland said, presumably with a straight face. “TaTa is the start of something bigger. She’s the first artist of a new generation. A-Pop is the next cultural evolution, and TaTa is its first icon.” But wait, it gets grosser. Co-founder Zayd Portillo insists, “The artists of tomorrow won’t just be human, they’ll be IP, code, and robotics that are fully autonomous.”