The estate of Tupac Shakur, the legendary hip-hop artist, has issued a formal cease-and-desist letter to Drake following his use of artificial intelligence (AI) to generate a voice resembling Tupac’s on the diss track “Taylor Made.”
Howard King, legal counsel for the Tupac Shakur Estate, expressed strong disapproval in the letter. “The Estate is deeply disappointed by this unauthorized use of Tupac’s voice and likeness,” King wrote. Beyond copyright infringement, the letter emphasizes the act as a “clear misuse” of Tupac’s legacy within hip-hop history. King asserts that the unauthorized use not only violates intellectual property rights but also undermines the respect owed to Tupac’s memory.
The letter further criticizes the target of the AI-generated Tupac’s insults. King highlights Kendrick Lamar’s established positive relationship with the Tupac Shakur Estate, suggesting that using AI Tupac to attack Lamar “compounds the disrespect” of the unauthorized impersonation.
Mopreme Shakur, Tupac’s brother, publicly echoed these concerns. In a recent interview with TMZ, Mopreme condemned Drake’s use of AI to impersonate Tupac, calling it a tactic akin to using an unfair advantage in a conflict. He aligned himself with Suge Knight’s previous statement, asserting that Tupac’s legacy shouldn’t be reduced to a “pawn” in a personal dispute.
This legal action emerges amidst Drake’s ongoing feud with Kendrick Lamar. “Taylor Made” marks Drake’s latest response, following his initial diss track “Push Ups.”
The Tupac Shakur Estate’s stance raises significant questions about the boundaries of acceptable tactics in hip-hop feuds and the potential legal ramifications of using AI to impersonate deceased artists. The coming days will likely see further developments as the music industry grapples with these issues.