Suno Sued Over Elvis Presley and Eminem Catalogs in Expanding AI Copyright Fight

Generative artificial intelligence music startup Suno is facing two new copyright infringement lawsuits from rightsholders controlling the catalogs of Elvis Presley and Eminem, alleging the platform replicates the artists' voices, styles, and protected lyrics without a license.

The actions, first reported by Variety and detailed by Engadget, mark another escalation in the recording industry's campaign against generative music platforms, testing where fair-use defenses end when proprietary training data generates commercial-grade imitations.

The complaints were filed separately by the entity managing Presley's musical rights and Eight Mile Style, the publisher that controls hundreds of Eminem recordings. Both filings point to audio generated on Suno that allegedly mimics Presley's distinctive vocal delivery or emulates Eminem's lyrical structures and cadence. Attorneys representing the plaintiffs argued in joint statements that Suno's tools "make human creativity obsolete, coldly replicating without a license in seconds what takes years to learn, struggle with, maintain, and endlessly attempt to make better and perfect."

Suno denied permitting unauthorized material across its systems. In a statement provided to Variety, the company said it prohibits "any unauthorized use of an artist's work," noting that guardrails block prompts citing "specific artists' names and songs" while third-party moderation tools screen outputs for "potential misuse."

The lawsuits add to a swelling docket of intellectual property challenges confronting Suno. Earlier this year, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group filed joint litigation alleging ongoing infringement in Suno's flagship v6 model family. The Presley rights group has also pursued other generative model builders, filing a $41 million damages claim against Anthropic over unauthorized training on Presley compositions.

The music industry's approach to generative audio remains fragmented between courtroom enforcement and negotiated integration. While Sony and Universal continue to pursue litigation, Warner Music Group withdrew its copyright complaint against Suno last year after reaching a direct licensing pact that shares revenue and permits opt-in training.