The phenomenon of artificial intelligence is increasingly penetrating the Romanian music industry. Lolita Cercel, a digital character created entirely with AI, went viral in just a few weeks, gathering millions of views.
Its creator, known as Tom, spoke to CNN’s Antena 3 about the inspiration behind his project and the impact artificial intelligence can have on music.
Lolita’s creator prefers anonymity
Tom is a visual designer from Bacău with years of experience in video editing, who prefers to remain in the shadows so that attention remains on the Lolita Cercel character he created.
He confesses that the idea of Lolita started from a desire to convey emotion through his own lyrics, and the AI gave him the necessary tools to turn this vision into reality.
“I tried to make it seem as real as possible (…). The inspiration came from an 80-year-old volume of poems, written by a Romanian author who used colloquial, slum language. I liked the style and adapted it for Lolita, to make it authentic”, explained Tom.
How does such a play come about?
The creation process is not at all simple, as some would imagine just because artificial intelligence is used. A single video takes up to two weeks of work, says Tom, who combines AI tools with classic editing techniques. He builds the frames by hand and then integrates them into a coherent visual flow.
“It’s a mix between AI and classic production. I work in parallel on several clips, make frames, edit them, adjust them. Technology has allowed me to bring my ideas to life”says Tom.
Tom says that Lolita will continue in the same musical direction, one that has already caught on with the public. His passion for music is ancient, and AI has finally given him the opportunity to express it without barriers:
“Technology has democratized the process. Now I can turn thoughts into something real“.
Will there be concerts with Lolita?
The creator confirms that the idea of concerts is already on the table.
“We’ve been planning this since the beginning of the project. The desire is there, but we’ll see how things develop“, he says.
Some artists have expressed concern that the emergence of AI competitors could affect their income. Tom says, however, that Lolita Cercel is not competing with anyone.
“Lolita didn’t come to take someone’s place. It’s a separate niche. I’ve already received collaboration proposals from real artists. I don’t think she’s stealing anything from anyone“.
