By Leslie Katz
Publication Date: 2026-03-02 23:50:00
AI-generated musician Michael Bennett is quickly gaining fans, even if he’s not real.
Screenshot by Leslie Katz
A video of an aging rocker named Michael Bennett performing a heartbreaking song America’s Got Talent triggers violent reactions worldwide. But the heavily tattooed musician with long white hair and thick silver rings on his fingers is not real. It is AI generated.
In a YouTube video making the rounds on social media, “Bennett” sings “After I’m Gone,” a tearful ballad that expresses the pain of being ignored by his child. “You walk past everything I gave like it was nothing at all,” sings the AI-generated musician as he accompanies himself on electric guitar. “I gave you my whole life. You can’t even call me.”
The gravelly voice sounds convincingly human, but a closer look at the video suggests otherwise. There’s the single tear on the man’s left cheek, remaining static and never rolling down his weathered face…
