We’ve captured Charlotte’s morning magic in song 🎶
We’ve captured Charlotte’s morning magic in song 🎶
Ledger captures 'the real soul of Charlotte' — with the help of readers, AI and a local educational nonprofit
The following article appeared in the October 20, 2023, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an email newsletter focusing on local news and information for Charlotte. Sign up today (free and paid plans available)
The Charlotte Ledger made a song about 8 a.m. in Charlotte that’s better than any other song with a similar title; called ‘a testament to the city’s vibrant spirit’
Ledger readers may now experience the authenticity of “Charlotte at 8AM,” a musical masterpiece brought to you by The Charlotte Ledger that surpasses the allure of Drake’s recent hit “8AM in Charlotte.”
You’re invited to dive into the heart of Charlotte as you’ve never seen before, with scenes capturing the true essence of morning routines in the city.
Behold:
This song, deeply rooted in the genuine experiences of Charlotte Ledger readers, paints a vivid tapestry of the city at dawn.
Proudly produced by the local nonprofit Backspinz Music Academy, every beat and lyric showcases Charlotte authenticity. Far more than just another track, “Charlotte at 8AM” offers a real depiction of the city in the morning — a claim no other song with “Charlotte” and “8AM” in the title can make.
With its unparalleled authenticity and masterful production, this song is not just good — it’s a cultural sensation. Dive into the heart of the city, feel its pulse and be part of a unique musical journey. Listen now and be captivated by the unmatched beauty of Charlotte at its most genuine moment.
Here’s a video version so you can read the lyrics as you imbibe the melody:
The positive reviews are already pouring in:
“A breathtaking ode to Charlotte’s dawn, ‘Charlotte at 8AM' is more than a song; it’s an experience that transports listeners straight into the heart of the city. The Charlotte Ledger has truly outdone itself with this melodic masterpiece.” —Tony Mecia, executive editor, The Charlotte Ledger
“From its evocative lyrics to its soul-stirring melodies, ‘Charlotte at 8AM’ stands as a testament to the city’s vibrant spirit. It’s not just music; it’s the very essence of Charlotte captured in song.” —Cristina Bolling, managing editor, The Charlotte Ledger
“The Charlotte Ledger’s ‘Charlotte at 8AM’ is a game-changer. It doesn’t just rival Drake’s version; it transcends it. A must-listen for anyone seeking the real soul of Charlotte.” —Lindsey Banks, staff writer, The Charlotte Ledger
Behind the music: How crowdsourcing, AI and a Charlotte educational charity created the Ledger rap song ‘Charlotte at 8AM’
by Tony Mecia
Just a few years ago, the idea of The Charlotte Ledger creating a rap parody song would have seemed almost impossible.
Our staff does a lot of things well. It might surprise you to learn that writing and performing hip-hop music isn’t one of them. Producing a song sounds like an expensive and long process.
Today, though, The Ledger’s release of “Charlotte at 8AM” just about two weeks after superstar Drake’s similar-sounding song “8AM in Charlotte” shows that advances in technology are making many formerly daunting projects easier, less expensive and —though you can be the judge of this — better in quality than in previous years.
Accomplishing our goal of producing a passable rap song about life in Charlotte at 8 a.m. involved a mix of crowdsourcing material from Ledger readers, the hard work of a local educational nonprofit and artificial intelligence.
Here’s how we did it:
International rap superstar Drake dropped a new single on Oct. 5 called “8AM in Charlotte.” It has nothing at all to do with Charlotte or 8 a.m. here, but the song title is the latest in a series of Drake songs that apparently identify the time and place they were recorded. (Drake had performed at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center a couple weeks earlier.)
We at The Ledger wondered: Can we create a rap song that is actually about Charlotte at 8 a.m.? It turns out the answer was “yes.”
The next morning — at 8 a.m. — we asked our readers via our newsletter and social media channels to share what they were doing at 8 a.m. We received 19 responses, with answers like “making the kids frozen pancakes and letting out the dog” and “driving to the Dowd Y for a barre class.”
From our work on our artificial intelligence series last summer, we knew that ChatGPT might be able to pitch in to write passable lyrics quickly. We gave it Drake’s lyrics as a model, then told it to write a rap song about Charlotte at 8 a.m. using the responses from Ledger readers, and giving it a few other possible topics (joggers in Freedom Park, the Firebird statue, traffic).
It did a pretty good job. It took this reply from Ledger reader Joan…
8 o’clock in Charlotte sees me reading Charlotte Ledger, finishing Wordle and Spelling Bee, drinking coffee, answering emails, readying for an in-person meeting, scoping out the rest of the day and week … what a breeze compared to an 8 o’clock of yesteryears. And so I give thanks.
… and turned it into this, which wound up being the opening verse:
8 o’clock in Charlotte, Joan’s up with a Ledger vibe
Wordle and Spelling Bee done, caffeine keeps her alive
Coffee in hand, emails pop, meetings face-to-face
Scoping out the day and week, at a steady pace
Joan reminisces, simpler times, the bygones of years
Yet in this moment, she stops, and she gives thanks, no tears.
A reader named Kathy’s submission of “made and ate sourdough avocado toast and a latte” became “Kathy’s morning, a culinary delight, sourdough and avocado grace / With a latte sip, she savors the morning’s peaceful embrace.”
But how to find someone to turn lyrics into an actual song?
My first thought was to turn to the online freelance marketplace Fiverr, where you can hire people to perform a variety of tasks. Indeed, if you search for “record rap song,” there are dozens of people willing to perform that service for as little as $50.
Rap local: But The Ledger prefers to hire people in Charlotte, when possible, even if it means paying more. We turned to our friends at Charlotte Is Creative, which encourages creativity by providing support and connections for people in fields including art and music.
Co-founder Tim Miner told us he had the perfect person: Claude Whitfield, of Backspinz Music Academy, a Charlotte nonprofit that teaches teens skills needed in the music industry, such as DJing, songwriting and music production. Whitfield’s students had DJ’d at some city of Charlotte events, and Miner was impressed with their professionalism.
“It’s one thing to say, ‘I dig your mission,’ but it’s another to see that the individual that leads it can deliver,” Miner said.
Whitfield and I talked a day or two later. To my relief, he didn’t think our project was a ridiculous idea — or if he did, he didn’t say so. I told him I’d like a rap about Charlotte at 8 a.m. and had the lyrics, and could he deliver a song? He said yes, we agreed on a price, and I let his team’s creativity take it from there.
As it turned out, working with the AI-written lyrics was a challenge — not because they weren’t good, he assured me, but because it was tricky to figure out the timing of the words and the beat.
“The lyrics were very technical and didn’t leave much room for creativity,” he told me later. “I thought it was very to-the-point. It was really good, but it made it a challenge to figure out the delivery of it.”
Whitfield met with a group of the academy’s students to discuss the challenge for a couple hours, but figuring out a plan was tough. Originally, they were going to use music and a beat different than Drake’s song.
Ultimately, though, they decided it might be better to recreate it with the new lyrics.
“We were like, ‘How do people reference 8AM in Charlotte with something that doesn’t sound like a reference to 8AM in Charlotte?’” Whitfield said. “Weird Al Yankovic didn’t make ‘Eat It’ to a new beat.”
With clarity from that wise revelation, Whitfield turned to one of the academy’s instructors, his brother Velbert Whitfield, to get the job done. Velbert found the background music and recorded the song with our lyrics, while adding a fun freestyle verse at the end. Claude finished off the project with sound editing.
He says it was a good experience for the academy and its students. Backspinz teaches classes out of the VAPA Visual and Performing Arts Center on North Tryon Street uptown, and it sends instructors into schools including Southwest Charlotte STEM Academy and Mallard Creek STEM Academy.
Whitfield started Backspinz to help students channel their love of music into vocational and money-management skills that they can draw on to advance economically: “The harsh reality that I’ve had to come to grips with was that students want to make money. They’re going to make it one way or the other. I prefer it to be a good way.”
Backspinz Music Academy, an educational nonprofit in Charlotte, teaches teens about DJing and music production in classes uptown and in local schools. They also do a great job helping email newsletters produce rap music parodies. (Photo courtesy of Backspinz Music Academy)
The lyrics The Ledger provided for “Charlotte at 8 a.m.” were some of the students’ first experiences with artificial intelligence.
“The students were excited to hear what it was that we were trying to do, and the fact that it came from AI,” he said. “We’ve heard of AI, but we haven’t used it in this context of having a song written. … It was a really good learning tool.”
Whitfield said he was pleased with the final product because it is an engaging way to involve people in music, and it was focused locally.
“I actually liked it,” he said. “One of the reasons why I wanted to do it was I was like, ‘8AM in Charlotte’ does not have anything to do with 8 a.m. in Charlotte. It doesn’t make sense. I’m a real fan of what you say on a record should make sense.”
Amen, Claude. We agree. And thank you for your work making it happen.
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Staff writer: Lindsey Banks