Tennessee may become the first state with a law protecting musical artists and others from having their name, image and likeness from being exploited without their consent, The Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act was in part inspired by increasing concerns about "deepfakes" and other forms of deception created using artificial intelligence (AI).
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Evanescence co-founder David Hodges was among the artists to speak in favor of the act at a Tuesday (Feb. 27) hearing.
"The ELVIS Act is the first-of-its kind legislation that will put important guardrails around artificial intelligence for music creators," Hodges said (as quoted by Music Row). "The Volunteer State is where many forms of the world's music were either born or popularized. Music is intertwined with our history, culture and economy, so when technology spits out something based on ingested works created by people, something that is unauthorized, something an artist never even sang, that is wrong. Period. By adding the word 'voice,' the ELVIS Act modernizes current law and makes it crystal clear that unauthorized AI-generated fake recordings are subject to legal action in Tennessee."
Christian singer-songwriter Natalie Grant echoed Hodges' support.
"Every day, there are new stories about deepfakes and AI-cloned voices and images that manipulates someone's likeness without their consent," Grant said. "This is not just a problem that effects celebrities, this is a human problem that affects us all. As a mother of three daughters, I am terrified by how this technology has been used to exploit teenagers. It's fitting that this bill is named the ELVIS Act, because Elvis performed so many different types of songs —from love songs to the blues, from pop songs to gospel music— but he infused them with his distinct voice, likeness, and personal qualities to create something new. Every individual should have the right to control their unique God-given qualities."
Representatives of the Recording Academy, Recording Industry Association of America and SAG-AFTRA were at Tennessee's State Capitol to show support for the proposed legislation.
On Tuesday, the act was unanimously passed the Senate and House Commerce Committees in Tennessee. It now moves on to the State General Assembly for the final stage of consideration. If it passes, it'll reach the desk of Gov. Bill Lee to be signed into law. Lee's signature shouldn't be an issue, considering that he introduced the bill alongside State Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson and House Majority Leader William Lamberth.
The ELVIS Act mirrors the federal-level No AI Fraud Act, which counts Lainey Wilson among its vocal supporters.
