A certain type of music has been inescapable on TikTok in recent weeks: clips of famous musicians covering other artists’ songs, with combinations that read like someone hit the randomizer button. There’s Drake covering singer-songwriter Colbie Caillat, Michael Jackson covering The Weeknd, and Pop Smoke covering Ice Spice’s “In Ha Mood.” The artists don’t actually perform the songs — they’re all generated using artificial intelligence tools.
But even before wading into how AI tools change things, there are underlying discrepancies in what course of action individuals have. Modern-day copyright law is at the federal level, and as part of that, DMCA takedowns offer a relatively quick and easy avenue to get material pulled without involving a lawyer or filing a lawsuit. The right of publicity is more complicated and only exists at the state level.