Slipknot’s Clown Says AI Is ‘A Professor In My Pocket’ And He’s Not Backing Away From It

Slipknot have built a career on confronting discomfort head on, and percussionist Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan isn’t about to soften that approach now. This time, his target is one of the most polarizing topics in modern music: artificial intelligence.

In a recent interview, Crahan made it clear he’s firmly on the pro AI side, describing the technology as “a professor in my pocket who only wants to do what I ask it”.

Rather than viewing AI as a creative threat, Crahan frames it as a tool, one that expands options without replacing the human behind the work.

The Slipknot co-founder said he’s been “employing AI 190 percent”, adding that he’s effectively used the idea of AI throughout his creative life.

For Crahan, it sits alongside gear upgrades, production techniques, and outside perspectives that push ideas forward, he’s even used AI to reshape “thousands and thousands” of poems he’s written since he was young.

Crucially, Crahan emphasized that AI is optional, not mandatory “No one needs to use it,” he said, before explaining how he applies it in practice.

“Here are my words,” he explained, “Don’t change them. Don’t alter them. But show me some different ways to sing it.”

For Crahan, the panic surrounding AI misunderstands its role. “What’s the difference between me pulling out my pocket producer… or me trying to get a famous producer that might not even work with me and could potentially cost me $150,000… who will only give me one or two ways – I’m not mentioning any names!”

The human element

He was equally firm on one key point, AI doesn’t remove the human element.

“It’s still going to take me to sing it. And it will never be like it was,” Crahan said, “None of it can work without you, the human. It’s a giant oracle… but it needs you.”

Not everyone in the Slipknot camp agrees though, frontman Corey Taylor previously voiced his opposition, saying in 2023, “I don’t care for any of that crap dude, to be honest.”

Elsewhere, Crahan also reiterated hopes that Slipknot’s long rumored ‘lost’ album Look Outside Your Window will finally arrive in 2026, after years of delays, even the band’s patience appears to be thinning.