Suno asks court to dismiss Jason Isbell's lawsuit over artist names in AI music prompts

The suit, filed in August by Isbell, David Lowery, Guy Forsyth and Eduardo Calle, alleges that Suno violates state right-of-publicity laws by letting users generate tracks that imitate specific artists, according to Variety. Suno attorney Andrew Gass argued that artist names work as shorthand for genres and that there is "nothing unlawful" about the practice, Music Business Worldwide reported. Suno also argued that the claims conflict with federal law and the First Amendment.

The court has not ruled on the motion, Billboard reported.

Why it matters: The case tests whether state identity laws can limit how AI music tools respond to prompts that name real artists, separate from the copyright suits the industry has brought against AI music companies.