AI songs in other languages: written natively, sung with a natural accent
A song in someone's own language lands differently. A Spanish song for a grandmother, a Korean R&B song for a partner, a Hindi folk song for Diwali: these are the songs people keep. The hard part for AI is that a translated English lyric rarely sings well, and a voice that pronounces the words but misses the rhythm of the language sounds wrong at once.
Updated
Midhull approaches this in two ways: lyrics are written natively in the sung language, never translated, and every language we offer for singing has been through a test before we claim it.
The languages we have tested for singing
Midhull sings in 37 languages, and each one was tested before we added it: English, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Italian, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Turkish, Czech, Dutch, Danish, Filipino, Swedish, Malay, Thai, Bulgarian, Polish, Croatian, Ukrainian, Arabic, French, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese, Norwegian, Finnish, Catalan, Romanian, Portuguese (Portugal), Hebrew, Persian, Urdu, Azerbaijani, Lithuanian, Icelandic and Nepali. We publish only languages we have tested, which today means these 37.
The app itself is available in English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese and Korean. Whatever the app language, each song can be sung in any of the 37.
Hear them
Each of these was made from a description written in that language. The prompts are exactly what we typed.
| Song | Language | Description we typed |
|---|---|---|
| Sunrise | English | Upbeat summer pop, bright synths and handclaps, female lead, about driving to the coast with friends at sunrise. |
| Komm nach Haus | German | Deutschpop-Ballade, Klavier und Streicher, männliche Stimme, 78 BPM. |
| Baila conmigo en la cocina | Spanish | Pop latino alegre con guitarra acústica y palmas, voz femenina, sobre bailar en la cocina un domingo por la mañana. |
| まだ帰らないで | Japanese | シティポップ寄りのR&B、ファンキーなベース、女性ボーカル、95BPM。 |
| 천천히 와도 괜찮아 | Korean | 한국 R&B, 미디엄 템포, 부드러운 남성 보컬, 기타와 신스 패드. |
| लौट के आऊँगा | Hindi | Indian folk acoustic, harmonium and acoustic guitar, male vocal, 90 BPM. |
Listen
Sunrise, take the long way
Summer pop · Bright
1:30
Lyrics
Windows down and the radio on
Coffee's cold but the night is gone
Five of us in a borrowed car
Chasing light to wherever we are
Sunrise, take the long way home
Sunrise, we were never alone
Hold the moment, let it glow
Sunrise, sunrise, don't let go
Sunrise, take the long way home
Sunrise, we were never alone
Hold the moment, let it glow
Sunrise, sunrise, don't let go
Komm nach Haus
Piano ballad · Tender
1:30
Lyrics
Ich hab dein Lachen noch im Ohr,
wie Regen leise an der Scheibe.
Die Stadt ist stiller als zuvor,
und ich weiß nicht, wo ich bleibe.
Komm nach Haus, das Licht ist an,
ich hab den Tisch für zwei gedeckt.
Komm nach Haus, so schnell du kannst,
bevor der Winter uns entdeckt.
Komm nach Haus, das Licht ist an,
ich hab den Tisch für zwei gedeckt.
Komm nach Haus, so schnell du kannst,
bevor der Winter uns entdeckt.
Baila conmigo en la cocina
Latin pop · Playful
1:30
Lyrics
Domingo lento, café en la mesa,
suena la radio, se va la pereza.
Tú con mi camisa, yo sin zapatos,
bailando torpes entre los platos.
Baila conmigo en la cocina,
que la mañana se vuelve divina.
Gira, gira, que nadie nos mira,
y el mundo entero se para y suspira.
Baila conmigo en la cocina,
que la mañana se vuelve divina.
Gira, gira, que nadie nos mira,
y el mundo entero se para y suspira.
まだ帰らないで
City pop R&B · Late night
1:30
Lyrics
改札を抜けたら
夜風が少し甘い
君からのメッセージ
既読のままでいい
ねえ まだ帰らないで
この街の灯りが消えるまで
ねえ ゆっくり歩こう
二人だけのリズムで
ねえ まだ帰らないで
この街の灯りが消えるまで
ねえ ゆっくり歩こう
二人だけのリズムで
천천히 와도 괜찮아
R&B · Warm
1:30
Lyrics
비 오는 창가에 기대어
네가 남긴 향기를 맡아
식은 커피 한 잔 사이로
너의 목소리가 들려와
천천히 와도 괜찮아
나 여기서 기다릴게
밤이 길어도 괜찮아
네가 올 때까지
천천히 와도 괜찮아
나 여기서 기다릴게
밤이 길어도 괜찮아
네가 올 때까지
लौट के आऊँगा
Folk · Longing
1:30
Lyrics
गाँव की पगडंडी, मिट्टी की खुशबू,
नीम की छाँव में बैठी है आरज़ू।
माँ की रसोई से उठता धुआँ,
याद दिलाता है अपना जहाँ।
लौट के आऊँगा, मेरे गाँव,
तेरी गलियों में रखूँगा पाँव।
शहर की रौनक भी फीकी लगे,
जब तेरी याद के दीपक जगे।
लौट के आऊँगा, मेरे गाँव,
तेरी गलियों में रखूँगा पाँव।
शहर की रौनक भी फीकी लगे,
जब तेरी याद के दीपक जगे।
How clearly the words come through
For the first seven languages we added, we measured in detail how clearly the lyrics are sung by transcribing each test song with a speech recogniser (Whisper large v3) and comparing the transcript with the lyrics we wrote. Word error rate is used for languages written with spaces between words, character error rate for Japanese and Korean. Lower is better.
How to read this honestly:
- Speech recognisers struggle with singing, so these numbers overstate errors, especially for French and Hindi. The Spanish score is mostly one extra chorus repeat, not misheard words.
- One take per language. This is a sanity test, not a benchmark.
- Hindi was also judged by ear. It was sung right, even though its number is the highest.
How the sung language is chosen
| What you do | What gets sung |
|---|---|
| Pick a language for the song ("Sing it in") | That language |
| Ask for it in your description, for example "a Spanish song for my grandmother" | Spanish |
| Write lyrics in Japanese, Korean or Hindi script | The language of the script |
| None of these | The language you sing your songs in, set in the welcome |
The setting in the welcome is separate from the app language, so a person using the app in English can have every song sung in Korean, and change it for any single song.
Writing lyrics that sing well in each language
Midhull counts the right unit for each language and shows the target for each line while you write in Write it:
| Language | What is counted | Verse line target | Chorus line target |
|---|---|---|---|
| English, German, French, Spanish, Hindi | Syllables (Hindi: aksharas) | 6 to 12 | 4 to 10 |
| Japanese | Morae | 9 to 15 | 7 to 13 |
| Korean | Syllable blocks | 7 to 12 | 5 to 10 |
Advice from writing the test songs:
- Write in the language, do not translate. Translated lines carry English stress patterns that fight the melody. If you have an English idea, describe it and let Midhull write the lyrics natively, or write fresh lines.
- Open vowels at the end of lines help. Spanish lines that end on a vowel sing easily; in German and English, give long consonant clusters a little room by keeping lines toward the middle of the target.
- Japanese loves a clear sabi. Put the title line in the chorus and repeat it.
- Korean R&B and ballads suit shorter chorus lines with a repeated phrase at the end.
- Hindi works well with folk instruments like harmonium and acoustic guitar; name them in the description.
A bilingual song
You can try a verse in one language and a chorus in another, for a couple with two home languages or a family song: choose the main language with "Sing it in" and write the other section in the second language. Mixed language songs are not part of our sound test, so treat them as an experiment, listen to both takes and rewrite a line if one does not land.
Frequently asked questions
Can AI make a song in Spanish?
Yes. Midhull sings Spanish natively, with lyrics written in Spanish rather than translated. Spanish is one of the 37 song languages we have tested.
Which languages can Midhull sing in?
37 languages: English, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Italian, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Turkish, Czech, Dutch, Danish, Filipino, Swedish, Malay, Thai, Bulgarian, Polish, Croatian, Ukrainian, Arabic, French, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese, Norwegian, Finnish, Catalan, Romanian, Portuguese (Portugal), Hebrew, Persian, Urdu, Azerbaijani, Lithuanian, Icelandic and Nepali. Each one was tested before we added it.
Do I have to use the app in that language?
No. The app language and the sung language are separate. You can pick another sung language for any single song.
Can I write the lyrics myself in another language?
Yes. Write it sings your words as written, and shows a target length for each line counted in the right unit for that language.
Will it translate my English lyrics?
No. Midhull writes lyrics natively in the sung language; it does not translate yours. Describe the song in your own words and choose the language it should be sung in.