Indie Music Discovery

Submit Music

  • Discover
  • Playlists
  • Radio
  • Friends
  • About
  • Royalties
  • Connect
    • Spotify
    • Instagram
  • Submit Music

Taylor Swift and Transcriptionists Stump IBM Watson in Song Lyric Challenge

by Featured Guest April 17, 2016 1:02 pm

When the machines (inevitably) take over the world, our songs will be safe.

In a recent test, a human-based transcription service pitted two of professionals against IBM supercomputer Watson to see who could more accurately transcribe popular song lyrics, including those of Taylor Swift.

The result: The humans won handedly. In fact, the transcriptionists didn’t make a single error during the four-song test. Watson combined for a whopping 33 errors, including 29 missing words. While he may be a reigning Jeopardy! champion, Watson’s still no match for T-Swizzle. (But… then again, who is?!)

To make the challenge fair, a cappella versions of each song were used so Watson wouldn’t be “confused” by the music when using speech-to-text software. Next, they “unplugged” Watson so he couldn’t access the Internet. The transcriptionists were held to similar standards, “pinky promising” they didn’t already know the songs used and wouldn’t look them up.

Yet, this wasn’t a preemptive attack on machines everywhere. It was “just for fun.” The original concept was to see if Watson would produce any mondegreens—funny misunderstandings of song lyrics. In this aspect, the experiment failed. Watson came off as random and befuddled while the transcriptionists were perfect. Mondegreens are hilarious, yet the closest Watson got was during “Runnin’ With The Devil.” He confused, “Least I don’t need to beg or borrow” with his own interpretation: “The startled me truck bed through barlow.” (He must have thought it was a country song…)

Fun aside, there is no doubt a lesson behind this. Watson may be the “smartest machine on Earth,” but he can’t process speech as clearly as people. All the knowledge in the world will never replace human understanding.

The computers haven’t won… yet. Until then, machines beware! T-Swizzle will continue to be trouble (trouble, trouble)…

Taylor Swift vs IBM Watson-Song Lyrics Challenge

Share this:

  • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads
  • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Print (Opens in new window) Print

Related Articles


Discover more from Indie Music Discovery

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Submit Music

From our friends at CyberPR, highly recommend.

Buzz to Bond by Ariel Hyatt (CyberPR)

Article Spotlight

Balaji Raao-Dasa Gaanamrutha

Interview with Balaji Raao – Dasa Gaanamrutha

  • Interview with Janet Noh – Growing Up With You
  • Interview with Eddie Canyon – Id10t
  • Interview with Parmy Dhillon – Nashville

Find more music from our supporters.

spotlight

Most Popular Playlist

Spotlight

Janet Noh-Growing Up With You

Interview with Janet Noh – Growing Up With You

  • Siren Premiere Emotional New Video for “February’s Son”
  • Interview with Eddie Canyon – Id10t
  • Interview with Parmy Dhillon – Nashville

Check out more music from our supporters.

Resources

From Buzz To Bond
From Buzz To Bond by Ariel Hyatt

Recent Articles

Mark T. Speakman Premieres New Single “Universe Dreams,” A Faith-Filled Reflection on Purpose, Identity, and Hope

  • Robbie Gennet to Perform Phase in Full During Live YouTube Premiere
  • Dragged Up Let the Freak Flag Fly on Frenetic New Single “Rapunzel”
  • Libby Ember Turns Nostalgia Into Dreamy Indie Pop on “Pool Life”

Receive Articles via Email

Enter your email to receive new posts in your inbox. You can unsubscribe at anytime.

spotlight

The AlphiyO Show
The SODEH Hour by Sodeh Records

Discover more music

Miss the Heart Challenge Expectations With Fierce New Single “Know Me Better”

More indie music

  • ARK IDENTITY Explores the Space Between Reality and the Unknown on “Signals”
  • Em Armstrong Debuts Stunning Single “Behind”
  • Ariana Fig Debuts Stunning Single “I Hope You Love Me”
  • The Free States Leaves Plenty of Room for Discovery on”Love & Death”
  • Interview: Brodie Christ

Unlimited Sounds Radio


Apple App Store | Android App Store
The SODEH Hour by Sodeh Records
The SODEH Hour by Sodeh Records

Search our index

Translate to your preferred language

spotlight

Copyright © 2026 Indie Music Discovery.com.
An Unlimited Sounds Publishing & Distribution, LLC property.
All Rights Reserved.DMCA + Terms of Use | Privacy PolicyPowered by Studiopress and Bluehost.