Tyga has said he used artificial intelligence as a production tool on his new album, $tarface, rejecting criticism that the technology undermines the music. He compared its use to the early backlash against Auto-Tune, arguing that artists can use new tools creatively while remaining responsible for the core work.

The rapper said AI helped supply specific elements such as 1980s-style synthesiser sounds and a guitar solo, but maintained that he wrote the material and performed all vocals himself. $tarface introduces an 1980s-inspired alter ego and arrives amid wider debate in rap over alleged AI-made songs, including controversy surrounding Fenix Flexin’s “Rubberz”; Tyga and Flexin have also recorded an unreleased collaboration, “Lavish”.