Over the years, we've lost many musical legends – most recently, the Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne. But it's not just fans that have been mourning Oz, his musician pals have also paid their respects, including husky, hip gyrating singer, Rod Stewart.
In a bizarre homage, Hot Rod created a series of AI selfies featuring Ozzy posing with other late and great musical legends – a touching sentiment executed in quite possibly the worst way I could ever imagine. For every time I try to defend the few ways to use AI properly and productively, there's always some out-of-pocket story that sets us back. Ah, Rod. It's the thought that counts.
The strange heavenly visions appeared at a recent concert in Ameris Bank Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, Georgia. From beyond the grave, large screens projected a beaming Ozzy (selfie stick in hand) posing with departed celebs such as Michael Jackson, Freddie Mercury, Amy Winehouse and XXXTentacion. The event was captured by one TikTokker, who repeated, "No... what is happening?" as confused cheers rose from the crowd.
It's safe to say that second-hand viewers were shocked by the stunt, with comments under the video calling it "wild", "crazy", and "weird". One commenter had a more open-minded response, writing, "I think this was a really nice loving respectful way he was trying to show how his grief and how he missed all of them. People need to chill everyone mourns in their own way."
While I somewhat agree with the more optimistic side of things, I always feel slightly uneasy when AI is used to revive the dead. However, it's clear Rod had no intention of offending and simply wanted to pay tribute to a departed pal. Are there better ways to do this? Certainly. But one must remember Rod is an old dog, not degrees away from those grandmothers getting fooled by AI Facebook scams. I choose to see it merely as a hilariously miscalculated homage to a musical legend.
