![\"Entertainment](\"https:\/\/www.digitalmusicnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Lionel-Richie-Live-1024x546.jpg\" "\\"Entertainment\\"")
<\/p>\n
Photo Credit: Raph_PH<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Entertainment Is the era of voice trademarks upon us? It seems that way, as Lionel Richie has become the latest entertainment professional to file related applications amid AI\u2019s rapid expansion. <\/strong><\/h2>\nSpecifically, Tuskegee-born Richie moved to obtain four trademarks yesterday \u2013 joining the likes of Taylor Swift<\/a> and Matthew McConaughey, both of whom have sought voice and likeness trademarks as of late.<\/p>\nAccording to the filings, Richie is specifically seeking sound marks for snippets of his famed song lyrics: \u201cHello, is it me you\u2019re looking for?\u201d; \u201cSay you, say me\u201d; \u201cEasy like Sunday morning\u201d; and \u201cAll night long.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, all the applications mention \u201ca man saying\u201d the lyrics in connection with, among other things, \u201centertainment information services,\u201d stage performances, interviews, and related websites.<\/p>\n
These specific usages aside, it\u2019s not a secret that the aforesaid AI, which is pumping out all manner of soundalike and lookalike media, played a key part in Richie\u2019s submitting the applications.<\/p>\n
But will they receive USPTO approval? If so, how exactly would the four-time Grammy winner look to protect his IP under current trademark law? <\/strong><\/h4>\nAdmittedly, we lack definitive answers here. On the former front, Gerben IP pointed<\/a> to the possibility of Richie and others encountering \u201csignificant legal hurdles\u201d with the heretofore little-seen applications.<\/p>\n(A few adjacent questions: As these applications are seeking to protect actual voices, what happens when similar-sounding entertainers come along? Is this a first come, first served situation that will leave future generations out of luck? And what of existing voice overlap among public figures generally?)<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, McConaughey has already secured several trademarks; his \u201cHey, hey, hey\u201d application was filed back in 2023. Furthermore, despite the enforceability questions, it\u2019s always possible that voice and likeness trademarks will prove useful in courtroom confrontations down the line.<\/p>\n
That ties back to another unknown: How the \u201cNIL\u201d focus will evolve in the approaching years. Between the AI and music-investment explosions, it seems safe to say that there\u2019s never been a bigger emphasis on the rights.<\/h4>\n
Time will tell how this \u2013 and the corresponding trademark process \u2013 evolves in the coming years. There\u2019s also the chance that Congress will update voice and likeness law for the AI era; a modified version of the No Fakes Act, the prior iteration of which sputtered out in committee, was introduced last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/section><\/div>\n
According to the filings, Richie is specifically seeking sound marks for snippets of his famed song lyrics: \u201cHello, is it me you\u2019re looking for?\u201d; \u201cSay you, say me\u201d; \u201cEasy like Sunday morning\u201d; and \u201cAll night long.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, all the applications mention \u201ca man saying\u201d the lyrics in connection with, among other things, \u201centertainment information services,\u201d stage performances, interviews, and related websites.<\/p>\n
These specific usages aside, it\u2019s not a secret that the aforesaid AI, which is pumping out all manner of soundalike and lookalike media, played a key part in Richie\u2019s submitting the applications.<\/p>\n
But will they receive USPTO approval? If so, how exactly would the four-time Grammy winner look to protect his IP under current trademark law? <\/strong><\/h4>\nAdmittedly, we lack definitive answers here. On the former front, Gerben IP pointed<\/a> to the possibility of Richie and others encountering \u201csignificant legal hurdles\u201d with the heretofore little-seen applications.<\/p>\n(A few adjacent questions: As these applications are seeking to protect actual voices, what happens when similar-sounding entertainers come along? Is this a first come, first served situation that will leave future generations out of luck? And what of existing voice overlap among public figures generally?)<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, McConaughey has already secured several trademarks; his \u201cHey, hey, hey\u201d application was filed back in 2023. Furthermore, despite the enforceability questions, it\u2019s always possible that voice and likeness trademarks will prove useful in courtroom confrontations down the line.<\/p>\n
That ties back to another unknown: How the \u201cNIL\u201d focus will evolve in the approaching years. Between the AI and music-investment explosions, it seems safe to say that there\u2019s never been a bigger emphasis on the rights.<\/h4>\n
Time will tell how this \u2013 and the corresponding trademark process \u2013 evolves in the coming years. There\u2019s also the chance that Congress will update voice and likeness law for the AI era; a modified version of the No Fakes Act, the prior iteration of which sputtered out in committee, was introduced last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/section><\/div>\n
(A few adjacent questions: As these applications are seeking to protect actual voices, what happens when similar-sounding entertainers come along? Is this a first come, first served situation that will leave future generations out of luck? And what of existing voice overlap among public figures generally?)<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, McConaughey has already secured several trademarks; his \u201cHey, hey, hey\u201d application was filed back in 2023. Furthermore, despite the enforceability questions, it\u2019s always possible that voice and likeness trademarks will prove useful in courtroom confrontations down the line.<\/p>\n
That ties back to another unknown: How the \u201cNIL\u201d focus will evolve in the approaching years. Between the AI and music-investment explosions, it seems safe to say that there\u2019s never been a bigger emphasis on the rights.<\/h4>\n
Time will tell how this \u2013 and the corresponding trademark process \u2013 evolves in the coming years. There\u2019s also the chance that Congress will update voice and likeness law for the AI era; a modified version of the No Fakes Act, the prior iteration of which sputtered out in committee, was introduced last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/section><\/div>\n