Elvis and Eminem rights holders sue Suno

The artificial intelligence music firm Suno is facing fresh legal challenges from the rights holders of Elvis Presley and the publisher of various Eminem tracks. The claimants allege that the company unlawfully produces music and lyrics that imitate these performers.

Legal representatives for the Presley estate argue that Suno has breached Tennessee’s Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act. This legislation prohibits the use of AI to replicate a singer's voice, according to the lawsuit.

The complaint asserts that "Suno has mechanically encoded itself with artists’ identities, hard-work, creativity, and time, and harnessed them all for a consistent conveyor belt of cold hard cash." These proceedings resemble a September lawsuit brought by Jason Isbell and others, which alleged the creation of imitations without citing direct copyright infringement.

The legal filing further claims that "Suno’s ravenous race to the bottom aims to make human creativity obsolete, coldly replicating without a license in seconds what takes years to learn, struggle with, maintain, and endlessly attempt to make better and perfect."

Suno spokesperson Cat McCormack stated that, "Suno exists to help people create new, original music, not to trade on anyone’s name or likeness, and we prohibit any unauthorized use of an artist’s work." McCormack added that the company blocks prompts for specific artist names and songs, while using third-party providers to check for misuse in uploaded audio and lyrics.

The company maintains that it is continuously enhancing its safeguards for users and artists. Suno is currently embroiled in multiple other legal disputes involving Sony, UMG, Reservoir Media, and Jason Isbell.