Tupac Shakur’s estate threatened to sue Drake and ordered him to delete a track that featured an AI-generated copy of the late rapper’s voice.
Drake released the song Taylor Made Freestyle – a diss track aimed at Kendrick Lamar — on his Instagram page on Friday, which features verses created by AI software imitating both Shakur It is Snoop Dogg.
In a cease and desist letter seen by Sky News’ US partner NBC News, Howard King, a lawyer representing Shakur’s estate, requested that Drake remove the track from all platforms where it is publicly available.
The letter sent on Wednesday states that the Canadian rapper has until noon on Thursday to confirm that he will remove it or that the estate will “pursue all legal remedies” against him.
“Not only is the record a blatant violation of Tupac’s publicity and estate’s legal rights, it is also a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time,” King wrote.
“The estate would never have given approval for this use.”
The letter also describes the estate’s “dismay” regarding the track’s subject matter, saying that Lamar is “a good friend of the estate who has given nothing but respect to Tupac and his legacy publicly and privately” and that this “compounds the insult ”.
On the track, Shakur’s AI-generated voice asks Lamar to respond to Drake’s previous diss track about him, released several days earlier, saying lines like: “Kendrick, we need you, the savior of the West Coast / You seem a little nervous with all the advertising / You asked for smoke, now it seems like you’re too busy to smoke.
The letter states that the track and its popularity have created the “false impression that the estate and Tupac promote or endorse the similar-sounding lyrics.”
Shakur’s estate is also seeking damages, including all proceeds from the record, which has so far only been posted on Drake’s Instagram page, as well as additional damages for substantial economic and reputational harm caused.
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The letter alleged that Drake’s nonconsensual use of Shakur’s image violates Shakur’s right to publicity, an intellectual property right that protects against misappropriation of someone’s name or likeness.
Sky News has contacted Drake’s representatives for comment.
Prominent rapper Snoop Dogg’s AI-generated voice was also used on the track.
Snoop Dogg posted a video to his Instagram Story shortly after posting the diss track, where he said, “They did what? When? How… What’s going on… I’m going back to bed.”
The use of AI in the music industry has been the subject of intense debate since last yearwhen Drake’s own voice was cloned alongside The Weeknd by the artist known as Ghostwriter.
The track was removed from all platforms shortly after being released in April.
This story originally appeared on News.sky.com read the full story
