Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed into law first-of-its-kind legislation aimed at protecting songwriters, performers, and music industry professionals against the potential dangers and misuse of artificial intelligence (AI).
The Republican governor signed the legislation, known as the Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act, while on stage alongside musicians and other state representatives at honky-tonk Robert’s Western World in Nashville on March 21.
The measure—a nod to Elvis Presley, one of the state’s most iconic residents—is set to take effect on July 1.
In a press release announcing the new law, Mr. Lee noted Tennessee’s music industry supports more than 61,617 jobs across the state, contributes $5.8 billion to its gross domestic product, and fills over 4,500 music venues.
However, the music industry at large is increasingly at risk amid fast-advancing personalized generative AI cloning models and services that allow users to impersonate humans or make unauthorized fake works in the image and voice of others, without their consent.
“From Beale Street to Broadway, to Bristol and beyond, Tennessee is known for our rich artistic heritage that tells the story of our great state,” said Mr. Lee. “As the technology landscape evolves with artificial intelligence, I thank the General Assembly for its partnership in creating legal protection for our best-in-class artists and songwriters.”
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The new law updates Tennessee’s personal rights protection law to include “vocal likeness” and will add “protections for songwriters, performers, and music industry professionals’ voice from the misuse of artificial intelligence,” according to the governor’s office.Additionally, the measure allows for legal action against individuals who publish or mimic another person’s voice without their permission, or who use a technology to produce an artist’s name, photographs, voice, or likeness without the proper authorization.
Protections under the measure can be criminally enforced by district attorneys, with violators at risk of being charged with a Class A misdemeanor.
The ELVIS Act unanimously passed the state Senate and House Commerce Committees in February and had widespread support from multiple industry groups, including the Academy of Country Music, the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), The Americana Music Association, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI), the Christian Music Trade Association, and more.
Tennessee is the first state in the country to enact such measures.
Speaking to reporters shortly before signing the bill, Mr. Lee noted that while there are certainly benefits to increasingly advanced AI, “it also, when fallen into the hands of bad actors, can destroy this industry.”
