Tupac Shakur’s estate is threatening to sue Drake over his recent Kendrick Lamar diss track, calling what appears to be the use of an artificial intelligence-generated version of the late rapper’s voice a “blatant abuse” of his legacy.
Drake released the track, “Taylor Made Freestyle,” on his Instagram page Friday, using AI software to generate verses emulating both Shakur and Snoop Dogg.
In a cease-and-desist letter Wednesday, Howard King, an attorney who represents Shakur’s estate, requested that Drake remove the track from all platforms where it is publicly available.
Drake, whose legal name is Aubrey Drake Graham, has until noon Thursday to confirm his cooperation. Otherwise, the estate will “pursue all of its legal remedies” against him, according to the letter, a copy of which was obtained by NBC News.
“Taylor Made Freestyle,” which is not yet on streaming services, is Drake’s latest diss track against Lamar amid their feud.
“Not only is the record a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the 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 in the letter, which was first reported by Billboard. “The Estate would never have given its approval for this use.”
A representative for Shakur’s estate had no additional comment. A representative for Drake declined to comment.
The letter warned that Drake’s nonconsensual use of Shakur’s likeness violates Shakur’s right to publicity, an intellectual property right protecting against the misappropriation of somebody’s name or image.
The track and its popularity have created the “false impression that the Estate and Tupac promote or endorse the lyrics for the sound-alike,” the letter states.
Shakur’s estate seeks damages including all profits from the record, as well as additional damages for substantial economic and reputational harm caused.
“The unauthorized, equally dismaying use of…
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