AI Music Generation Guide: Suno, Udio & ACE-Step

The New Era of AI Music

AI music generators like Suno, Udio, and ACE-Step can now produce full songs with vocals, instrumentals, and production quality that rivals professional demos. The key to great results is knowing how to prompt them.

How AI Music Prompts Work

Unlike text or image prompts, music prompts combine two elements:

1. Style/genre tags — short descriptors that define the sound
2. Lyrics — the actual words to be sung (optional for instrumentals)

Writing Effective Style Tags

The Formula:

[genre], [sub-genre], [mood], [instrumentation], [tempo], [vocal style], [production quality]

Example:

indie pop, dreamy, female vocals, acoustic guitar, soft drums, lo-fi production, 110 BPM, bittersweet

Genre Tags That Work Well:

Category	Effective Tags
Genre	pop, rock, hip-hop, electronic, jazz, classical, folk, R&B, country, metal
Sub-genre	lo-fi hip hop, synthwave, bossa nova, grunge, drill, chillwave, shoegaze
Mood	melancholic, euphoric, aggressive, peaceful, mysterious, romantic, triumphant
Vocals	female vocals, male vocals, raspy, breathy, powerful, falsetto, choir, spoken word
Instruments	acoustic guitar, piano, synth bass, 808, strings, brass, theremin
Production	lo-fi, polished, raw, overdriven, clean, reverb-heavy, dry
Era	80s, 90s, vintage, modern, futuristic, retro

Platform-Specific Tips

Suno

• Uses natural language style descriptions
• Great for complete songs with vocals
• Supports song sections: [Verse], [Chorus], [Bridge], [Outro]
• Use [Instrumental] tag for sections without vocals
• Custom mode gives more control than Simple mode

Udio

• Excels at realistic vocal quality
• Better for specific genre reproduction
• Supports audio-to-audio (extend and remix existing clips)
• Reference tracks help guide the style

ACE-Step

• Open-source, runs locally or via API
• Strong instrumental generation
• Supports detailed technical parameters (BPM, key, time signature)
• Best for background music and instrumentals

Structuring a Song Prompt

Suno Format:

Style: indie folk, acoustic, male vocals, warm, fingerpicked guitar, gentle harmonies

[Intro]
[Instrumental, gentle guitar picking]

[Verse 1]
Walking down the old dirt road
Morning light like liquid gold
Coffee cooling in my hand
Learning how to understand

[Chorus]
We're all just figuring it out
Every whisper, every shout
No one's got the answers mapped
We're all just figuring it out

[Verse 2]
[Continue lyrics...]

[Bridge]
[Key change, build intensity]

[Outro]
[Instrumental fade, guitar only]

What Makes AI Music Sound Professional

Do:

• Use specific genre tags (not just "good music")
• Specify BPM for rhythmic consistency
• Include production descriptors (lo-fi, polished, raw)
• Write lyrics that scan well (match syllables to natural rhythm)
• Use section markers for structure

Don't:

• Overload with contradicting tags ("heavy metal, gentle, peaceful")
• Write overly complex lyrics (AI handles simple phrasing better)
• Expect exact replication of a specific artist's voice
• Forget to specify instrumental vs vocal sections

Use Cases

Use Case	Best Platform	Tips
Background music for videos	Suno, ACE-Step	Use [Instrumental], specify mood and tempo
Social media audio	Suno	Keep under 60 seconds, strong hook in first 5 seconds
Podcast intro/outro	ACE-Step, Suno	15-30 seconds, consistent energy, clean ending
Song demos	Suno, Udio	Full lyrics with section markers
Lo-fi study streams	ACE-Step, Suno	Specify "loopable", no vocals, chill BPM (70-85)
Jingles and ads	Suno	Short, catchy, specify "jingle" in style

Iteration Strategy

1. Generate 4-8 variations of the same prompt
2. Pick the best one as a starting point
3. Use "extend" features to build on good sections
4. Remix or regenerate weak sections
5. Post-process in a DAW if needed (add EQ, compression, mastering)