It would be impossible to write an article about the computerised overkill of pop music without bringing up T-Pain. Undoubtedly the "King" of auto-tune as well as the trendsetter who really brought the robot-voice trend to prominence T-Pain is like the joke you play at a party that nobody actually realises is such a thing. Instead of laughing, the pop world has embraced T-Pain and his go-to effect, turning auto-tune from a gimmicky tool into a bonafide musical movement. Popularised in hit songs like "Buy U a Drank," T-Pains liberal use ignited an age where digital effects are played off in pop music as an obvious stylistic choice (though other artists, including Cher and Kid Rock had previously used the robo-voice gimmick). Nowadays, T-Pain's auto-tune style is everywhere, from pop-radio to karaoke bars. He even went as far as to team up with a company called Smule for the development of a mobile app called "I Am T-Pain," which allows people to auto-tune their own voices in everyday situations. As far as the app is concerned, we're not sure if T-Pain is making fun of himself or trying to inflate his own self-importance. Either way, there is little down that Pain's digitised voice technique is just a temporary fad, and when it ends the guy's songs are going sound like the musical version of an old Microsoft operating system: decrepit, ugly, and nearly unbearable to listen to.
Craig is a Chicago-based freelance writer who like to talk incessantly about music on AbsolutePunk.net. He also does writing for marketing companies to "pay the bills," but his true passion lies with the pop culture sphere.
