Artists Unite for Legislation Against AI Voice Cloning
On February 2, nearly 300 artists, including musicians, actors, and creators, have expressed their support for a bipartisan Congressional bill aimed at regulating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for cloning voices and likenesses. The bill, known as the No Artificial Intelligence Fake Replicas And Unauthоrized Duplications Act (“No AI FRAUD” Act), was introduced in the U.S. House on January 10, seeking to establish a federal framework to safeguard voices and likenesses in the era of AI.
The Human Artistry Campaign, a coalition of creative industry organizations, placed a print ad in USA Today featuring prominent names such as 21 Sаvаge, Bette Midler, Cardi B & Offset, Chuck D, Common, Gloria Estefan, Jason Isbell, the estate of Johnny Cash, Kelsea Ballerini, Lainey Wilson, Lauren Daigle, Lamb of God, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott, Nicki Minaj, Questlove, Reba McEntire, Sheryl Crow, Smokey Robinson, the estate of Tom Petty, Trisha Yearwood, and Vince Gill.
The ad advocates for the No AI FRAUD Act, emphasizing its role in defending the fundamental human right to voice and likeness, protecting individuals from nonconsensual deepfakes. The bill addresses concerns related to unauthоrized AI cloning and seeks to ensure the protection of individuality.
The Human Artistry Campaign, which released a set of seven core principles on artificial intelligence in March 2023, advocates for AI developers to acquire licenses for artistic works used in developing and training AI models. It also urges governments to refrain from creating new copyright or intellectual property exemptions that could exploit creators without permission or compensation.
In addition to musicians, the ad includes actors such as Bradley Cooper, Clark Gregg, Debra Messing, F. Murray Abraham, Fran Drescher, Laura Dern, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Kristen Bell, Kiefer Sutherland, Julianna Margulies, and Rosario Dawson.
The No AI FRAUD Act, introduced by Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) alongside several other representatives, addresses the misuse of AI, particularly in incidents like the viral “fake Drake” track “Heart On My Sleeve.” The legislation proposes a federal standard to prohibit the use of AI to replicate the voices and likenesses of public figures without their consent. While an artist’s voice, image, or likeness is generally protected by “right of publicity” laws, the bill aims to establish a consistent federal standard in this regard.
The music industry has rallied behind the No AI FRAUD Act, with support from organizations such as the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Universal Music Group, the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), the Recording Academy, SoundExchange, the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), and the Latin Recording Academy.