Riffs
The Rock and Roll Reclaimed blog. Subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss an update.
Getting things off the ground with AI
AI is helping me move my single-person business forward. This week, I'm returning to MAICON in Cleveland for my fourth year.
Slop is made of people
AI didn't invent low-quality content. It made it easier to produce. A personal take on hustle culture, human responsibility, and making better stuff.
Back to the Beginning, one year later
One year after Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath’s farewell at Villa Park, a personal reflection on music, community, and the power of creative independence.
Five years
Five years after leaving corporate life, a journey through music, creativity, and technology toward reclaiming an independent home on the open internet.
Elvis Presley and the human performance filter
Elvis Presley made every song unmistakably his own. Explore the human performance filter—and why authentic voice matters in an age of AI-generated content.
Creativity, AI, Brian Eno…and farming?
What does volunteer corn have to do with generative AI? Possibly more than you'd think. A Nebraska farm story about craft, context, and why better inputs matter — whether you're growing crops or prompting ChatGPT.
Loving the alien
David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust shows how simple ideas leave room for imagination, and why creators using AI still need to own their stories.
GNOME, Bowie, and why your creative sausage needs a recipe
Creativity works best when you understand the ingredients rather than just generating the results. We use some examples from tech world to figure out why.
Rock & Roll Outkasts
Every year people ask, “But the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame let Outkast in?” Yes — and they should have. Here’s why rock & roll is bigger than genre.
AI writing problem? Just a writing problem?
We blame AI for generic, soulless writing, but maybe it’s just holding up a mirror. After decades of human-generated slop, AI has learned from the best (and the worst). Here’s why that realization might actually make us better writers.
Dreams turn to nightmares
This year’s Halloween playlist steps into the macabre dreamworld—ghosts, monsters, killers, and the shadowy edges of sleep. Heavy on Black Sabbath, rich with tributes, and featuring eerie newcomers, it’s a seasonal soundtrack of haunting rock, metal, and moody blues. Let the darkness in.
Reflecting on MAICON 2025 and Ace Frehley
A reflection on MAICON 2025, the balance between AI and human creativity, and how the late KISS guitarist Ace Frehley reminds us to keep our wild, imperfect, human spark—the real ace in our deck.
Listen up!!! Taylor Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” (2025)
Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl delivers hooks, strong songs, and some surprising influences. But the production? Feels like it was recorded underwater. Here are my thoughts.
Creative evolution: exploring Led Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy"
Led Zeppelin's experimental "Houses of the Holy" offers a blueprint for creative risk-taking in the AI era. Use AI as influence, not replacement.
Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy (1973)
Taking a look at (and listening to) Led Zeppelin’s 5th record, 1973s Houses of the Holy.
Hip-hop and human creativity
Hip-hop's creative use of sampling and remixing offers a blueprint for responsible AI adoption. Just as DJs transformed existing music into something new, we can use AI as a tool to enhance human creativity rather than replace it, learning from hip-hop's democratization of technology.
Going back to the beginning: a tribute to Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath
This edition of Rock and Roll Reclaimed reminisces about the legacy of Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath, detailing a tribute concert held on July 5, 2025, in Birmingham, England, which marked Ozzy's final performance before his passing. The episode reflects on the significance of Black Sabbath's evolution in heavy metal, Ozzy's larger-than-life persona, and the individual contributions of each band member. Additionally, it contemplates the role of AI in music creativity, contrasting it with the human spirit and story behind legendary artists.
Listen up!!! Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath
If you're new to Ozzy and Black Sabbath, I've included a playlist of 40 of my favorite Ozzy Osbourne tracks from his entire career, both with Sabbath and as a solo artist. I've also included my favorite Ozzy-era Black Sabbath album, and my favorite Ozzy Osbourne solo album.
Finding genius in the process: remembering Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson didn't just make great music—he showed what it means to refuse to settle. His creative process offers vital lessons for the AI age.