In a cease and desist letter obtained by various media outlets, Howard King, a litigator representing the Tupac estate, referred to Drake as “Taylor Made Freestyle” a “blatant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the estate’s legal rights.” The letter demands that Drake remove the track within 24 hours or face potential legal consequences.
“A blatant abuse of inheritance”, claims the estate
The letter says the estate is “deeply dismayed and disappointed” by Drake’s unauthorized use of Tupac’s voice and persona, calling it a “blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest entertainers hip-hop of all time.
“The estate would never have agreed to this use,” King wrote, adding that the use of Tupac’s voice against Kendrick Lamar, whom the estate considers a friend who has shown respect for the legacy of Tupac, “aggravates the insult”.
Drake’s Diss on Kendrick Lamar Had AI-Generated Vocals from Tupac and Snoop Dogg
Released on April 19, “Taylor Made Freestyle” was Drake’s latest salvo in his ongoing feud with Kendrick Lamar. The track features AI-generated vocals meant to sound like Tupac and Snoop Dogg shoot Lamar.
In addition to potential publicity rights violations, King’s letter also suggests that the AI model used to create Tupac’s voice may have violated copyrights by “training” on existing recordings of the music of the rapper.
Although Snoop Dogg has not publicly commented on the matter, the Tupac estate’s response suggests that unauthorized use of an artist’s likeness could be subject to legal action.
Drake’s story with AI
AI has repeatedly imitated the voices of deceased artists like Tupac and Freddie Mercury, and even living artists like Taylor Swift and Kanye, to create renditions of other artists’ songs that have been objected to.
Ironically, Drake has previously spoken out against AI-generated music, particularly in the case of the viral song “Heart on My Sleeve,” which featured an AI-generated version of his vocals. However, his use of AI-generated vocals on “Taylor Made Freestyle” appears to contradict his previous stance.
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