Billy Joel’s Young Self Comes Back to Life in New AI-Powered Documentary

Billy Joel is getting the AI treatment in a new film about his early career, but the Piano Man isn’t involved in the project.

A 20-minute film titled 1971: Billy Joel’s Lost Interview will open the LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival on September 25 at the Long Island Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame in Stony Brook Village, New York.

According to a report from People published on Wednesday, August 19, the film uses artificial intelligence to recreate Joel, 77, as his 22-year-old self, paired with real audio from a 1971 interview he gave to Ed Mann on the C.W. Post radio station WCWP.

The interview was recorded shortly after the release of Joel’s debut solo album, Cold Spring Harbor, years before he became one of the biggest names in music.

Joel is not involved with the film, which comes as his representatives have pushed back against another unauthorized project about the singer’s life.

His team previously criticized the upcoming biopic Billy and Me in a statement to People, calling the project “both legally and professionally misguided.”

Tom Needham, executive director of the LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival, acknowledged the controversy surrounding the use of AI in entertainment while announcing 1971: Billy Joel’s Lost Interview and releasing a teaser trailer on Tuesday, August 18.

“We are entering a new era in filmmaking, where emerging technologies like artificial intelligence are creating new possibilities for preserving and sharing stories from the past,” Needham said, per People.

“We recognize that AI in entertainment is a topic that will generate discussion and different viewpoints, but this film demonstrates how technology, when used thoughtfully, can help us reconnect with important moments in music history.

“1971: Billy Joel’s Lost Interview allows audiences to see a young Billy Joel before worldwide fame changed his life, and we hope people will experience it with curiosity and an open mind.”