Energetic, smiling, multiracial individuals enjoying a Latin EDM festival in a smoky nightclub illuminated by flashing pink, purple, and blue lights.
AI Tests

The AI Hit Machine: My Journey into Modern Music Creation

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From Idea to Ibiza: Can AI Actually Create Chart Gold?

The songs that leave an impression are the ones you notice within seconds, the ones you just know people will love.

What if that next global anthem was created entirely by AI?

Sounds completely out there? That’s exactly what I’m testing. This is an experiment to create a complete Pop-Dance EDM track using nothing but AI tools.

I’m documenting everything as a case study. Every strategic decision, every creative choice, every technical challenge. I want to know if this is genuine innovation or just clever marketing hype. Maybe both.

Why Pop-Dance EDM? It’s the perfect stress test. You need electronic complexity, pop hooks that stick, and vocal elements that feel authentic. If AI can nail this genre fusion, we’re looking at something truly different. But most importantly, because I like it.

I will explore whether AI can help with the music creation pipeline – from initial beats to song structures that actually work.

Phase 1: Starting with Strategy (Not Just Sound) 

Because I am not a traditionally creative person, nor am I an expert in the music industry, I’ve chosen to guide this project with what I know best: market research and strategic planning. My approach involves studying the industry to learn more and setting up a clear plan. While genuine artistic expression is paramount, a strategic approach can significantly increase a project’s chances of success. A powerful method is to begin by understanding the audience, identifying what they might be missing, and then crafting something that fills that void. This marketing mindset is what I’m using to guide me through this entire project.

So, before opening any music software, I used Gemini for comprehensive market analysis. This wasn’t about stifling creativity; it was about testing whether AI could support a market-driven creative process.

1.1 Building an AI Market Intelligence System

Before crafting any sounds, I needed to understand the “why” behind this song. Not just “this sounds cool,” but real market opportunity.

Here’s how I approached it: I fed the AI system industry data, trend reports, social listening insights – everything I could access. Then I prompted it to identify specific market gaps.

Strategic Framework:

  • Emerging listener segments: Groups whose musical needs aren’t being addressed.
  • Underserved niches: Emotional tones, lyrical themes, or genre mashups showing demand but lacking supply.
  • Content gaps: Areas where listeners engage heavily but current hits aren’t optimized.
  • Emotional resonance points: Moods or messages driving engagement without proper musical representation.

This went beyond data collection; it was strategic intelligence gathering, specifically aimed at validating a core thesis I had in mind: a Latin Reggaeton-inspired Pop-Dance EDM fusion. Yeah, that’s a mouthful, but there’s method behind this apparent madness.

1.2 Market Research Results (Some Surprising Discoveries)

With this specific genre in mind, AI analyzed market data and provided surprising insights.

Top-down view from DJ booth overlooking a packed open-air Ibiza nightclub with people dancing under colorful LED lights and white stucco architecture at night.

Demographics That Drive Success: Electronic music is dominated by the 18-35 crowd, with Gen Z leading. These aren’t passive listeners. They’re experience-seekers who literally create viral trends across platforms like TikTok (Edison Research, 2025; Global Growth Insights, 2025).

The Psychology Behind Music Consumption: AI analysis revealed something fascinating: these listeners aren’t hunting for background music. They want high-energy, authentic experiences connecting them to larger music communities. They crave emotional depth aligning with dance culture, not just surface-level party anthems (We Are Crossfader, 2025; Edison Research, 2025).

Platform Behavior: This audience lives on TikTok, Spotify, and YouTube for discovery. Here’s a great insight: 84% of Billboard Global 200 songs in 2024 went viral on TikTok first (TikTok Newsroom, 2025; House of Solo Magazine, 2025).

The Latin America Opportunity: Electronic festivals are exploding across Latin America, particularly Mexico and Brazil. Latin America represents one of the fastest-growing region globally for music consumption, with incredible streaming numbers (IFPI, 2025; Grand View Research, 2024).

Why Reggaeton: Reggaeton isn’t just influencing global pop anymore; it’s redefining it completely. That signature dem-bow rhythm, bilingual lyrical approach, seamless blend of rapping and melodic singing – it’s evolved by absorbing pop and trap elements into something universally appealing. Latin music consistently ranks among the most globally streamed genres with impressive growth trajectories (Berklee College of Music, 2024; Luminate, 2025; AP News, 2024).

Strategic Hypothesis: After analyzing all this data, a clear pattern emerged: massive global demand exists for high-energy, uplifting anthems featuring powerful female vocals, infused with Latin Reggaeton rhythm and cultural elements. This niche thrives among digitally native, community-focused audiences seeking authentic experiences – especially in rapidly expanding Latin American markets.

That became my target opportunity.

1.3 Translating Data into Creative Direction

With the market mapped and audience profiled, I reached the conceptualization phase. AI had to prove it could bridge analytical insights into actual musical ideas.

Here is the “genre DNA extraction” process.

Deep-Diving into Success Patterns: To understand what makes a hit, I directed the AI system to analyze successful tracks from these genres. My selection framework focused on songs with proven global chart performance, significant genre influence, and broad cultural impact. Specifically, I chose:

David Guetta’s “Titanium” (feat. Sia): A multi-platinum global hit (uDiscoverMusic, 2025; Wikipedia – Titanium, 2025) known for its anthemic EDM production and Sia’s powerful vocals, setting a high standard for EDM-pop collaborations.

Calvin Harris’s “Summer”: With over 1 billion streams (EDM House Network, 2024) and a #1 debut on the UK Singles Chart (Wikipedia – Summer, 2025), this track exemplifies a defining summer hit with broad pop and dance influence.

Avicii’s “Wake Me Up”: Boasting over 2.7 billion Spotify streams (MyStreamCount.com, 2025) and being the highest-charting dance track of the 2010s (RouteNote Blog, 2023), it was chosen for its groundbreaking fusion of EDM with folk elements and immense global popularity.

Bad Bunny’s “Dakiti” (with Jhay Cortez): This track made history by simultaneously debuting in the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 and atop the Hot Latin Songs chart (Wikipedia – Dakiti, 2025), accumulating over 2.8 billion total views on YouTube and Spotify as of March 2023 (Wikipedia – Dakiti, 2025). Its innovative sound and global chart performance made it a key choice.

Karol G’s “Tusa” (with Nicki Minaj): Reaching #1 in 19 countries (Wikipedia – Tusa, 2025) and over 1.6 billion Spotify streams (MyStreamCount.com, 2025), this song was chosen for its massive international success and its significant influence as a female-led collaboration in the Latin urban genre.

J Balvin’s “Mi Gente” (with Willy William): With over 3 billion YouTube views as of April 2022 (Wikipedia – Mi Gente, 2025) and hitting #3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with the Beyoncé remix (Wikipedia – Mi Gente, 2025), this track was selected for its undeniable cultural impact and its role in bringing reggaeton to mainstream international success.

To get the AI to perform this analysis, I used a tool called Sonoteller.ai. I simply pasted the YouTube URLs of these reference tracks into Sonoteller.ai’s analysis tool. In a short time, Sonoteller.ai provided breakdowns of each song’s musical attributes, including genres, moods, instruments, BPM, and key. It also helped identify section tags like choruses and verses. This allowed me to quickly grasp the underlying structures and elements that made these tracks successful.

The Sonic DNA Discovery: From this analysis, recurring patterns emerged:

Song Architecture Patterns: Both genres consistently use a “rollercoaster” structure – Intro, Verse, Chorus, Drop, Breakdown, Build-up, Drop, Outro – creating emotional momentum throughout tracks (Mix Elite, n.d.).

Vocal Delivery Approaches: EDM often features powerful, anthemic pop delivery, while Latin tracks leverage strong, rhythmic phrasing with melodic rapping and call-and-response elements. Sonoteller.ai results show this range:

  • “Titanium,” “Summer,” and “Tusa” feature mid/high-pitched vocals with empowering or energetic moods, aligning with anthemic pop.
  • “Dakiti” and “Mi Gente” feature low/mid-pitched vocals with sensual, confident, or joyful moods, reflecting rhythmic Latin phrasing.
  • “Wake Me Up” stands out with a low/mid-pitched vocal and reflective mood, indicating a broader spectrum of vocal styles within EDM.

Hook and Melody Strategy: EDM builds catchy, evolving phrases creating emotional crescendos. Reggaeton uses simple, memorable hooks – often built around synths or brass – designed for instant recall and sing-along potential. While Sonoteller.ai doesn’t directly analyze “evolving phrases” or “crescendos,” the high “Energetic” and “Upbeat” mood scores, along with “Catchy” subgenres, indirectly support the presence of effective and memorable hooks across the selected tracks. The presence of these qualities is crucial for audience engagement and memorability, which are key drivers of commercial success in popular music (The Mystic Keys, 2025; UOW, 2023).

The Rhythmic Foundation Discovery: EDM typically operates at 120-130 BPM with heavy sub-bass and four-on-the-floor patterns. Reggaeton is built around that iconic ‘dem-bow’ rhythm – that 3+2 syncopation that makes you move (Berklee College of Music, 2024; Wikipedia – Dembow beat, 2025). Tempo analysis reveals EDM typically operates at 110-130 BPM while Reggaeton sits at 80-100 BPM, suggesting an optimal fusion sweet spot (ZIPDJ, 2025; Drumloop AI, 2023). However, Sonoteller.ai’s BPM analysis reveals a dynamic fusion landscape:

EDM tracks (“Titanium”: 123.05BPM, “Summer”: 129.2BPM, “Wake Me Up”: 124.2BPM) fall within the typical EDM range.

Latin tracks show a wider range: “Dakiti” (107.67BPM) is higher than traditional Reggaeton but still in a mid-tempo range, while “Tusa” (136BPM) and “Mi Gente” (136BPM) push significantly higher, even exceeding typical EDM tempos. This data indicates that successful fusions can explore a broader tempo spectrum, with global Latin hits often operating at higher BPMs than traditionally perceived for the genre.

Sound Design Philosophy: EDM generally aims for euphoric supersaw synths and dramatic risers building tension. Latin production often focuses on crisp percussion, warm pads, and drier vocal treatments for a more intimate and authentic feel. Sonoteller.ai’s instrument identification (Synthesizer, Drums, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Trumpet) and mood tags (Uplifting, Energetic, Sensual, Chill) align with the general sound design philosophies of these genres, even if it doesn’t detail specific synth types or mixing techniques.

Creating an AI “Hit Profile” Blueprint

Based on comprehensive analysis, I synthesized what I called a “Pop-Dance EDM hit profile” – essentially a detailed spec sheet for AI to follow during production.

  • Target Sub-Genre: Global Pop-Dance EDM with pronounced Latin Reggaeton rhythmic and vocal influence.
  • Core Rhythmic Elements: Fusion of driving four-on-the-floor kicks with subtle yet infectious dem-bow inspired grooves.
  • Atmospheric Goals: Euphoric, high-energy, uplifting with authentic Latin cultural elements.
  • Ideal Vocal Style: Powerful, anthemic female pop vocals incorporating rhythmic melodic phrasing and Spanish ad-libs.
  • Lyrical Themes: Unity, celebration, resilience, global connection – universal themes translating across cultures.

The Transparency Decision

Here’s where I made what some might consider a counterintuitive choice: instead of hiding the AI origins, I decided on complete transparency.

Authenticity matters more than ever in music. People detect fakes instantly. Rather than pretending this emerged from some mysterious human artist, I chose radical transparency.

Collaborative Brainstorming Process: I used Gemini to generate artist names and biographies explicitly announcing AI origins while maintaining cutting-edge, festival-ready energy.

Sample prompt: “Generate artist concepts for an AI Pop-Dance EDM artist. High-energy, euphoric sound with powerful female pop vocals – think David Guetta collaborating with Sia – but infused with Reggaeton rhythms like Karol G. Brand should scream major festivals, uplifting themes, vibrant global dance culture, clearly communicating AI origins.”

Complete Strategic Blueprint

This entire first phase culminated in the “AI-Generated Concept Blueprint” – a concise strategic roadmap defining every element from sound design to thematic content, rooted in genuine market analysis.

The Complete Track Directive:

  • Target Sub-Genre: Global Pop-Dance EDM with pronounced Latin Reggaeton rhythmic and vocal influence.
  • Core Rhythmic Elements: Fusion of driving four-on-the-floor kicks with subtle yet infectious dem-bow inspired grooves.
  • Atmospheric Goals: Euphoric, high-energy, uplifting with authentic cultural elements.
  • Ideal Vocal Style: Powerful, anthemic female pop vocals incorporating rhythmic melodic phrasing and Spanish ad-libs.
  • Lyrical Themes: Unity, celebration, resilience, global connection.
  • Artist Persona: Transparent AI artist, cutting-edge and festival-ready.

The Real Test Begins 🎧

Phase 1 is complete. I’ve used AI to identify real market opportunities and conceptualize a track with solid strategic foundations. The research phase involved deep AI-driven analysis to pinpoint the target audience and extract specific musical DNA for a global Pop-Dance EDM hit with authentic Latin Reggaeton elements.

But here’s where theory meets reality.

The big question: How do I transform this data-backed blueprint into actual music that moves people?

Because market research is one thing. Creating a track that actually resonates? That’s entirely different territory.

In my next exploration, “The AI Hit Machine: Production & Polishing – My Virtual Studio Experiment,” I’m taking you behind the scenes of actual music creation. We’re talking AI-powered production, vocal generation, arrangement decisions, and all the technical challenges that come with turning strategic insights into sonic reality.

Onto creating the soundtrack 

References

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