In the wake of profound personal loss, a Portage la Prairie resident has discovered a unique way to channel grief into creativity, offering personalized songs to help others commemorate love, memories, and loss.
Rick Nelson says the inspiration behind his project comes from a deeply personal tragedy.
“My wife was sick in 2023 at Christmas time, and a couple of days later, we went to the hospital, and they told me they’d have to intubate her and put her in a coma,” Nelson recalls. “She was in the hospital in Brandon for 18 days, but she never woke up from the coma.”
At the time of her passing, Nelson and his wife, Val, had been married for 22 years. He describes her passing as sudden, devastating, and life-altering.
“It was completely unexpected. One moment she was fine, and the next, everything changed,” he says.
Val Nelson, remembered by her husband Rick as the centre of his world, is the inspiration behind his What’s Your Beat project, which creates personalized songs to honour love, memories and loss. Submitted Photo/Rick Nelson
The experience led Nelson to search for a way to process his grief, and he eventually turned to artificial intelligence (AI) tools that could help transform his emotions into music.
“When people are grieving or going through any sort of emotion, they find songs that reflect their thoughts and feelings. I started playing with AI, using my own lyrics and ideas to make the songs a little better and more meaningful. It’s been a learning process, but once I started telling my stories through music, I found it a lot more healing than just listening to random songs that were written for other people,” he explains.
Nelson feeds memories, stories, and feelings into multiple AI programs, which help generate lyrics that he then turns into complete songs. The finished songs are shared on streaming platforms under the artist name What’s Your Beat, and Nelson’s project is entirely donation-based.
“Everybody, no matter their financial background, has access to a free song or two. It’s limited by my own time, of course, because it’s a one-man show, but I want this to be accessible to everyone,” he adds.
Nelson stresses that his project isn’t meant to replace traditional musicians but to fill a gap for people who might not otherwise have the means.
“I’d never want AI to take away from real artists, but you can’t expect someone to pay thousands of dollars for a custom song. I think this could be beneficial for anyone, love stories, grief, memories for elders who want to share their stories, really any situation.”
So far, Nelson has produced tracks that range from personal loss to love stories. One particularly poignant song, Fever, recounts his wife’s passing in a way that is both emotional and healing.
“It’ll help someone grieving by letting them tell the stories that mean the most to them or remember their loved ones, while feeling the music they choose. It’s been a process of healing for me, and I hope it can help others in the same way.”
Those interested in requesting a personalized song can contact Nelson through Facebook, Instagram, or his website, whatsyourbeat.com. A simple online form guides users through the process, and once completed, songs are delivered directly to their email and uploaded to streaming platforms free of charge.
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