What Is Tennessee’s ELVIS Act? A New AI Likeness Law

Key Takeaways:

• The ELVIS Act (Ensuring Likeness, Voice, and Image Security Act) is a Tennessee law that protects public figures from unauthorized use of their voice, likeness, and image by AI.
• It expands the Personal Rights Protection Act to address AI-generated impersonations and synthetic media.
• The law aims to combat deepfakes and digital misuse, giving artists stronger control over how their identities are used.

 

Known as the “Music Capital of the World,” Tennessee has long been the birthplace and home of musical legends. From Nashville’s country roots to Memphis’s rock and roll legacy, the state has shaped the global music industry and continues to influence it today.

In recent years, artificial intelligence has significantly impacted the music world, bringing both creative possibilities and serious concerns. AI tools are now being used to replicate artists’ voices, images, and likenesses—sometimes without permission. As this technology becomes more advanced and widespread, the need to protect the identities and creative rights of public figures is becoming increasingly important.

In response, Tennessee introduced the ELVIS Act. This is the first law in the United States specifically designed to safeguard artists from identity misuse powered by AI. Named in honor of Elvis Presley, the legislation gives performers, celebrities, and other public figures stronger legal tools to control how their digital likeness is used.

Why Voice, Likeness, and Image Protection Matters

For public figures, voice and image are more than personal attributes—they’re part of their brand, livelihood, and legacy. When used without permission, the consequences can be serious: reputational harm, misinformation, and financial loss.

AI has made it easier than ever to replicate someone’s likeness. Whether it’s cloning a voice, generating a video, or creating music that mimics a real artist, this raises growing concerns about fraud, exploitation, and ethical use.

Protecting a person’s digital likeness ensures they have the right to decide how they are represented—and by whom. This isn’t just about current performers; it also protects the legacy and income of late artists whose identities continue to hold cultural and commercial value.

In our article, Protecting Public Figures in the Age of AI, we explore why laws like the ELVIS Act are critical in establishing boundaries and consent in AI-generated content.

What Is Tennessee’s ELVIS Act?

The Ensuring Likeness, Voice, and Image Security Act (ELVIS Act) is a Tennessee law created to protect artists and public figures from the unauthorized use of their name, image, and voice by artificial intelligence (AI). The law went into effect on July 21, 2024, and makes it illegal to use AI to replicate or impersonate an artist’s voice or likeness without consent.

Building on Tennessee’s existing Protection of Personal Rights law, the ELVIS Act addresses modern challenges posed by synthetic media and AI-generated impersonations. It provides stronger legal protections for musicians, performers, songwriters, and other public figures whose identities are increasingly vulnerable to digital misuse.

This landmark legislation reflects growing concern within the entertainment industry. AI tools can now mimic well-known voices and faces with ease, often without permission. The ELVIS Act establishes clear legal boundaries, giving artists and their estates the ability to control how their digital identity is used and ensuring that their legacy and creative rights are respected as technology continues to evolve.

Why Was The ELVIS Act Introduced?

The primary goal of the ELVIS Act is to protect the voice, image, and likeness of artists and public figures from unauthorized use and exploitation. Below are the core issues that led to the law’s introduction:

1. The Rise of AI-Generated Content

AI platforms have made it simple for users to generate music or audio using a celebrity’s voice, which can be leveraged in advertising, media, or even new music releases. This not only takes away potential revenue for artists but also strips them of control over their likeness and how it is used. The fact that AI can now mimic an artist’s voice and generate content without their consent raises a major concern about reputational damage.

What if AI were used to create content that portrays an artist negatively, or is used in a way that contradicts their values or public image? The unauthorized use of an artist’s likeness or voice in these contexts can significantly harm their reputation and legacy, highlighting the urgent need for laws like the ELVIS Act. This legislation provides much-needed protections, ensuring that artists have control over how their identity is used and preventing exploitation through AI-generated content.

2. Gaps in Existing Laws

Before the ELVIS Act, the protection of individuals’ images and likenesses was governed by state-specific “right of publicity” laws, which were mainly designed for traditional forms of impersonation. Tennessee’s original right of publicity law, introduced in 1984 through the Personal Rights Protection Act, was not equipped to address the rise of AI-based impersonations. With only 35 U.S. states having comprehensive right-of-publicity laws, many of these existing laws did not account for the scale and precision of AI-generated replicas.

Tennessee, with its deep ties to music and entertainment—exemplified by Elvis Presley—acted quickly to close this legal gap, taking proactive steps to protect artists, leaving other states to catch up.

3. Preventing Misinformation and Reputation Damage

AI-generated deepfakes are becoming more convincing and more accessible. These tools can manipulate video, audio, or images to create entirely fake content that appears real. This poses a serious threat to public trust, especially when videos show public figures saying or doing things they never did.

One high-profile example came in 2023 when an AI-generated video featuring Kanye West went viral. The video used deepfake technology to simulate his voice and likeness, showing him making controversial statements. Although the video was eventually debunked, it caused widespread confusion and reputational damage. Incidents like this highlight the need for laws like the ELVIS Act, which create legal consequences for unauthorized digital impersonation.

4. Protecting Legacy and Revenue

AI misuse doesn’t just impact living artists. Deceased celebrities—whose names and images still carry significant cultural and commercial value—are equally at risk. For example, if a fake Elvis Presley concert created using AI were to circulate without approval, the estate could lose substantial income. It would also dilute the authenticity and legacy of the artist.

The ELVIS Act ensures that both living and deceased public figures are protected from unauthorized AI recreations, helping preserve their brand, artistic integrity, and rightful earnings in the digital age.

Key Provisions of the ELVIS Act 

What makes the ELVIS Act different from what came before? How does this legislation help protect the identities and legacies of individuals in new ways? Below are the main provisions of the ELVIS Act:

1. Expanded Protection of Personal Attributes 

The ELVIS Act expands Tennessee’s Personal Rights Protection Act of 1984 by adding “voice” to the list of protected personal attributes. This includes both real and AI-generated imitations of a person’s voice. By expanding Section 47-25-1105, the law now safeguards a person’s voice, photograph, likeness, and name from unauthorized commercial exploitation, ensuring these personal attributes cannot be used without consent.

2. Penalties for Unauthorized Use

The ELVIS Act significantly strengthens penalties for the unauthorized use of an individual’s protected attributes, such as their voice, name, photograph, or likeness. Victims, or their estates, can now pursue lawsuits for damages. These damages can include compensatory amounts for lost revenue or other economic harm caused by the misuse. Additionally, in cases of willful or malicious violations, punitive damages may be awarded to deter future misconduct and punish the wrongdoer.

3. Limited Defenses in Commercial Contexts

The ELVIS Act narrows certain defenses that could be used in commercial contexts. Specifically, claiming that content was unauthorized does not absolve liability for misuse. For example, platforms hosting unauthorized deepfake content cannot avoid responsibility simply by stating they did not create the content. This provision ensures that all parties involved—whether creators, distributors, or advertisers—are held accountable for the misuse of protected personal attributes.

4. Posthumous Protection

The ELVIS Act extends protection beyond an individual’s lifetime, ensuring the rights to their name, likeness, voice, and image are preserved after death. Heirs, executors, or administrators are authorized to manage and enforce these rights to prevent unauthorized use. This protects both the deceased’s legacy and potential revenue streams. However, this protection has a limit: it terminates if the rights are unused for two years after the first ten years following the individual’s death, ensuring only actively managed legacies remain protected.

5. Universal Application

One of the defining features of the ELVIS Act is its universal scope. It protects not only celebrities but also any individual’s name, photograph, likeness, and voice, extending these safeguards to everyone. This means that personal rights to identity are not limited to high-profile figures but apply to all individuals, ensuring broad protection against unauthorized use.

Implications of the ELVIS Act On AI Platforms and Agencies

The ELVIS Act brings significant implications for AI platforms and agencies that create, distribute, and monetize AI-generated content. It places increased responsibility on these platforms to ensure likenesses, voices, and images are used with proper authorization. Under the law, any AI technology or tool that produces or distributes an individual’s likeness or voice without consent can result in legal consequences for the platform hosting it. AI companies will need to ensure strict compliance with consent protocols. This includes developing systems for obtaining, tracking, and verifying permissions before using personal attributes in digital content creation.

AI platforms, especially those involved in deepfake technologies and synthetic media generation, will likely face a more complex regulatory landscape. They may need to introduce new tools that allow users to request, confirm, and manage consent for using their likenesses and voices. Failure to do so could expose platforms to liability, resulting in financial penalties or reputational damage. This could also prompt platforms to rethink their content policies, particularly regarding public figures or deceased individuals whose likenesses are used posthumously.

On the flip side, the ELVIS Act presents opportunities for AI companies to innovate within a regulated framework. The demand for consent management systems could lead to more transparent and ethical AI platforms. These platforms can offer users greater control over how their likenesses are used, creating new business models focused on responsible AI. By complying with the ELVIS Act, AI platforms can reduce legal risks while promoting a secure, ethical AI ecosystem. However, this will require careful planning, clear policies, and ongoing updates to meet the evolving standards set by the law.

ELVIS Law vs. Other State Laws

While other state laws aim to protect images and likenesses, they often fall short in addressing the rapidly growing issue of AI-generated content. Here’s a comparison of a few key state laws:

• Right of Publicity: The “Right of Publicity” is the law most similar to the ELVIS Act. The ELVIS Act is based on Tennessee’s version of the Right of Publicity Law, which grants individuals control over the use of their likeness. However, these laws vary by state and, importantly, do not address AI-generated likenesses, particularly regarding voice and audio content.
• Deepfake Legislation: Several states have passed laws targeting deepfakes in specific contexts like election interference, defamation, and fraud, offering some protection to public figures. However, these laws typically fail to directly address AI-generated likenesses with the level of detail and rigor that the ELVIS Act provides.
• California Civil Code Section 3344: This law provides a right of publicity for living individuals, protecting against the unauthorized commercial use of their name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness. However, it does not specifically address AI-generated content.
• New York Civil Rights Law §§ 50 and 51: Known as the right of privacy in New York, this law protects against the unauthorized use of a person’s name, portrait, picture, or voice for advertising or trade purposes. However, it does not comprehensively cover AI-generated deepfake technology.

Federal vs. State-Level Protections

AI-generated replicas and deepfakes are national issues, and relying solely on state laws presents several challenges:

• Inconsistent Protections Across States: The ELVIS Act explicitly addresses AI-generated content, while many states have yet to incorporate similar protections. This leaves artists and public figures vulnerable in jurisdictions without such laws.
• Jurisdictional Limitations: If a deepfake of a Tennessee-based artist is created in another state that lacks similar protections, enforcing the ELVIS Act becomes legally complicated. This creates challenges when content crosses state lines.
• Forum Shopping: The inconsistency in state laws can lead to “forum shopping,” where plaintiffs file lawsuits in states with favorable laws, even if there is little connection to that state.
• Burden on Businesses and Creators: Businesses and content creators working across state lines face challenges in complying with varying state laws. This legal complexity could stifle innovation and create uncertainty.

A federal standard would provide consistent protections across all states, ensuring individuals’ rights are safeguarded no matter their location. Unlike state laws, which are limited in scope, federal legislation could address interstate and international issues more effectively. A real-world example of this effort is the proposed NO FAKES Act of 2023, which aims to establish federal protections against unauthorized AI-generated content, bridging gaps left by state-level laws like the ELVIS Act.

Conclusion

The ELVIS Act is a major step forward in protecting artist identities, but it does come with challenges. Critics worry that it could overstep and restrict the creative potential of AI, especially in media and entertainment. As AI technology rapidly evolves, distinguishing between real and AI-generated content becomes more difficult, complicating enforcement. The law’s application to generative AI adds complexity, as these technologies continue to evolve. Additionally, inconsistent protections across states and jurisdictional limitations make enforcement harder when content crosses state lines.

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