Tennessee has passed an Elvis Presley-themed law to protect musicians and their voices from unauthorized artificial intelligence deep fakes.
The Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act was signed into law by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Thursday, March 21 during an event in Nashville.
The bill added an individual's voice to the state's Protection of Personal Rights law, which already covers a person's name, photograph or likeness.
Country artist Luke Bryan came out to show his support as Gov. Bill Lee signed the legislation on Thursday, March 21.
"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," Lee said in a press release.
"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."
The bill was praised by music industry figures, including country artist Luke Bryan.
"The leaders of this are showing artists who are moving here following their dreams that our state protects what we work so hard for, and I personally want to thank all of our legislators and people who made this bill happen," Bryan said at the event, according to Rolling Stone.
"It’s hard to wrap your head around what is going on with AI, but I know the ELVIS Act will help protect our voices."
Mitch Glazier, the chairman of the Recording Industry of America, also supported the new bill.
"This incredible result once again shows that when the music community stands together, there’s nothing we can’t do," he said.
"We applaud Tennessee’s swift and thoughtful bipartisan leadership against unconsented AI deepfakes and voice clones and look forward to additional states and the US Congress moving quickly to protect the unique humanity and individuality of all Americans."
Deep fakes are a growing problem for figures in the music industry. Unauthorized AI-generated covers are now commonplace on platforms like TikTok and YouTube.
Earlier this year, the White House backed Taylor Swift after AI-generated fake nudes went viral on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.
"It is alarming," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters after the incident in January.
"While social media companies make their own independent decisions about content management, we believe they have an important role to play in enforcing their own rules to prevent the spread of misinformation and non-consensual intimate imagery of real people."
'It’s hard to wrap your head around what is going on with AI, but I know the ELVIS Act will help protect our voices,' the singer said.
Tennessee's new law has received broad praise, but a different music-related political initiative passed drew significant outcry earlier this year.
Paramore rejected an honor from the state House of Representatives after Allison Russell didn't receive a similar recognition. Both artists took home trophies at the 2024 Grammys. Many commentators claim Russell didn't receive the honor because she's Black.
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The legislation came after Paramore rejected an honor from the state's House of Representatives earlier this year.
"Paramore will not accept any acknowledgement or honor from the TN House until Allison Russell is given the same recognition," the band said in an Instagram story last month.
"The blatant racism of our state leadership is embarrassing and cruel," vocalist Hayley Williams said in a more extensive statement provided to the Tennessean.
"Myself, as well as Paramore, will continue to encourage young people to show up to vote with equality in mind."
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