Tupac's estate slams Drake over AI-generated rap verse

Drake is facing legal action after releasing a song that used artificial intelligence (AI) to imitate the voice of the late Tupac Shakar. 

The Canadian rapper used Tupac's voice in his new diss track, 'Taylor Made Freestyle'. The song, which also uses the AI-generated voice of Snoop Dogg, is aimed at Kendrick Lamar. 

"Killuminati /Dons rise again / You can see it in my eyes again / Kendrick, we need ya, the West Coast savior / Engraving your name in some hip-hop history," AI Tupac raps. 

According to Pitchfork, Tupac's estate has sent Drake a cease-and-desist letter over the song. A lawyer for Tupac's estate called the use of the rapper's voice “a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time". 

"The Estate would never have given its approval for this use," entertainment lawyer Howard E. King said in a letter to Drake, according to Pitchfork.

ALSO READ: Billie Eilish against inappropriate use of AI in music

King says Drake's use of AI is "a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity".

"The unauthorized, equally dismaying use of Tupac’s voice against Kendrick Lamar, a good friend to the Estate who has given nothing but respect to Tupac and his legacy publicly and privately, compounds the insult."

Listen to 'Taylor Made Freestyle' below. Warning: the song contains strong language.

Drake's use of AI is interesting, especially considering his voice was cloned in 2023 to create a song called, 'Heart On My Sleeve'. The AI-generated song also featured The Weeknd's voice.

The track was removed from Spotify and Apple shortly after its release. It was later submitted for consideration for a Grammy in the 'Song of the Year' and 'Best Rap Song' categories. The song was submitted for songwriting and not for the AI-generated vocals. It did not make the final cut. 

Grammy officials set the record straight about their stance on AI-generated music. CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said the Recording Academy would not be handing out awards to AI. 

"If you’re awarding a Grammy to AI, I would be uncomfortable or even curious to know who we’re going to give the Grammy to. So for now, we’re going to … give the Grammy to the human side of the creativity," he told The Hollywood Reporter last year.

Mason added that artists would still be able to create songs with AI. However, they could only win for the human portion of the track. 

Many record labels have slammed the use of AI to clone the voices of famous musicians with permission.

ALSO READ: Grammy officials clarify stance on AI-generated music

Main image credit: Instagram/@champagnepapi