I am annoyed. I am upset. I am in mourning yet everyone else seems to be smiling and having a great time. The introduction and recent ubiquity of auto-tune just irks me. In my eyes music is supposed to be real, genuine, not digitally altered. Some of my favorite songs have flaws that the artist had obviously not planned but ended up leaving in the song, and they make the song that much more beautiful and relatable. After all, we are all human aren’t we?

The first hit song to include the magic of auto-tune software was all the way back in 1998 with Cher’s ‘Believe’. When I first heard it I remember thinking it strange but didn’t think much about it other than the fact that Cher must have been finally losing it…the voice of course. So amazing and unique, why would she alter it?

In the years since it has slowly grown to be a normal part of most pop music. In addition to auto-tune’s firm footing in the music industry, the recent gravitation towards house beats as a base has amplified its use that much more. It seems that everyone is doing it, everyone is playing it and everyone is listening to it; except me.

Janet Jackson, Faith Hill, Shania Twain, Lil’ Wayne, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears…All very talented, famous and unique voices tragically altered forever by the evil auto-tune.

What happened to the days of real instruments and raw, self-exposing voices? It all just seems so fake and inartistic to me and I unfortunately cannot change it, but I can complain about it and I will gladly use my only option to oppose this unwelcome, computerized, moneymaking giant.

In closing, I commend those artists who not only oppose the use of said technology but speak out against it. Artists like Death Cab for Cutie, a personal favorite of mine, and Jay-Z, who have sworn off its use and demonized it publicly in different ways. Thanks guys for doing what you can to preserve the purity and beauty of music, I truly appreciate it, but we’re battling corporate America, where profits are everything, and in the end we are sure to lose.