State Governor Bill Lee met with the late musician Elvis Presley’s ex-wife Priscilla on Monday to celebrate enacting the Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act.
It was signed into law on March 21 at the Robert’s Western World saloon in Nashville alongside country music stars Luke Bryan and Chris Janson.
“We employ more people in the music industry here than any other state,” Lee told reporters in Nashville.
The state’s music industry contributes US$5.8 billion to the nation’s gross domestic product and employs over 61,000 people.
Several organizations such as the Academy of Country Music, the Christian Music Trade Association and the Songwriters of North America supported the new legislation. It prohibits the unauthorized use of an artist’s voice without their consent. Those who violate it can receive hefty fines and other penalties.
“We applaud Tennessee’s swift and thoughtful bipartisan leadership against unconsented AI deepfakes and voice clones,” Recording Industry of America Chairman Mitch Glazier said last month in a government news release.
“Today, the ELVIS Act becomes the first-of-its-kind law to protect musicians from AI-generated synthetic media,” Tennessee Senator Jack Johnson added.