Eminem publisher sues AI music platform Suno for $41 million

The lawsuit against Suno

The Ferndale-based company Eight Mile Style has filed a federal lawsuit in San Francisco against the generative AI platform Suno. The publisher manages the rights to nearly 270 of Eminem's most famous songs, including tracks like "Lose Yourself" and "The Real Slim Shady." They are seeking more than $41 million in damages for copyright infringement.

The complaint argues that Suno built its entire business model on copyright violations at a scale never seen before. Eight Mile Style claims the platform benefited from the labor of others without providing any remuneration. The publisher describes the works as some of the most valuable in the world and emphasizes how protective they are of these iconic songs.

This legal action joins a growing wave of litigation from music industry heavyweights against AI song generators. The lawsuit specifically targets the way Suno uses copyrighted material to create a platform where users can generate music. The publisher contends that the platform is essentially trading on the value of existing intellectual property.

How the AI model was trained

The publisher points to previous court disclosures by Suno, which stated the AI model was trained on nearly every high-quality audio file available on the public web. The complaint alleges that Suno made illicit copies of millions of copyrighted musical works to build its technology. This process allegedly included the works owned by Eight Mile Style.

According to the lawsuit, the AI service scraped music and lyrics from popular websites like YouTube and Genius.com. This data was then used to create a platform where anyone paying a monthly subscription fee can generate complete songs. The publisher argues that this happens without any payment or permission from the original rights holders.

The complaint also highlights that Suno allegedly removed digital copyright information that was embedded in the songs it used for training. Because of this, the publisher is seeking an additional $672,000 in damages specifically for that violation. They argue these actions constitute a systematic theft of creative assets.

Bypassing artist guardrails

Suno has implemented certain restrictions to prevent users from generating content that names specific artists. For example, a user is currently blocked from typing the name "Eminem" into a prompt. However, the publisher contends that these guardrails are very easy for people to bypass with specific descriptions.

The lawsuit notes that users can still generate tracks that mimic a specific style by using strings of descriptive terms. For instance, a user might prompt the AI for a dark, intense rap style featuring fast delivery, heavy bass, and menacing themes. This allows the AI to produce music that sounds like a specific artist without using their name.

The publisher cited a specific example of a Suno-generated track titled "Slim shady x Rosefalls" as evidence of this issue. They claim the track used an AI-generated image of Eminem as cover art and featured vocals that were clearly derived from the rapper's actual voice. They also noted instances of verbatim or similar lyrics from hits like "Houdini" appearing in generated tracks.

Suno's defense and response

A spokesperson for Suno responded to the allegations by stating that the platform exists to help people create new and original music. They clarified that the company does not intend to trade on any artist's name or likeness. Suno maintains that they prohibit any unauthorized use of an artist's work through various internal policies.

To protect creators, the company claims it works with outside partners to check uploaded audio and lyrics for signs of misuse. They also stated that they are constantly working to strengthen their guardrails. The company says they will continue to add new safeguards to protect both the artists and their users from misuse.

The legal landscape for Suno remains complex as other industry players have taken different paths. While the Recording Industry Association of America sued Suno in June 2024, some major labels have already reached licensing deals with the firm. BMG and Warner Music Group have signed such deals, while Universal Music Group, which represents Eminem, remains a plaintiff in the ongoing dispute.