Trademark protection has become increasingly important as the rapid rise of generative artificial intelligence transforms how creative works are produced, distributed and consumed. AI can now imitate a person’s voice, generate realistic images, recreate distinctive styles and reproduce well-known catchphrases with remarkable accuracy. While these advances create significant opportunities, they also present legal and commercial risks for celebrities, creatives, businesses and individuals whose identities can be replicated without their consent.
In response, high-profile personalities are turning to trademark law as a proactive form of legal protection. Rather than waiting for AI-generated content to misuse their identities, celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Matthew McConaughey, Jimmy Kimmel, Lionel Richie and the Backstreet Boys are seeking trademark protection for their names, voices, catchphrases and other distinctive elements of their personal brands.
Although these developments involve famous individuals, the legal lessons extend far beyond celebrities. Content creators, influencers, musicians, entrepreneurs, athletes, public speakers and business owners increasingly depend on personal or commercial brands that AI can imitate. As the distinction between authentic and synthetic content becomes less clear, protecting distinctive elements of identity is becoming increasingly important in intellectual property and brand management.
The question is no longer whether AI can copy you. It is whether you have taken the legal and practical steps to protect your identity before misuse occurs.
Why Celebrities Are Trademarking Their Identities Against AI
The recent rise in celebrity trademark filings is a strategic response to one of artificial intelligence’s biggest legal challenges: existing intellectual property laws do not fully protect a person’s identity from AI-generated impersonation and commercial misuse.
Copyright law protects original works such as books, songs, films, photographs and artworks. However, it does not automatically protect a person’s voice, likeness, speaking style, mannerisms or reputation. Privacy, publicity and personality rights also vary across jurisdictions, making legal action against AI deepfakes and digital impersonation uncertain in some cases.
Trademark law serves a different purpose. It protects distinctive commercial identifiers such as names, logos, slogans, catchphrases, sounds and visual elements that consumers associate with a particular person or business. Where AI-generated content creates consumer confusion, falsely suggests endorsement or commercially exploits a person’s identity, registered trademark rights may provide stronger grounds for legal action.
This explains why celebrities are expanding their trademark portfolios rather than relying solely on copyright protection. However, trademark registration is not a complete solution. Depending on the circumstances, an effective identity-protection strategy may combine trademarks, copyright, contracts, passing off, privacy rights and personality rights.
Determining which rights apply and what elements should be protected requires more than filing a trademark application. A carefully developed intellectual property strategy can help creatives and businesses identify valuable brand assets, address potential legal gaps and establish stronger protection before commercial disputes arise.
Taylor Swift, Matthew McConaughey and Other Celebrities Protecting Their Identities
Against this backdrop, Taylor Swift, Matthew McConaughey, Jimmy Kimmel, Lionel Richie and the Backstreet Boys have taken steps to establish clearer legal rights over distinctive elements of their public identities.
On 24 April 2026, Taylor Swift’s company, TAS Rights Management, filed three trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Two applications cover sound marks for Swift saying, “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift” and “Hey, it’s Taylor,” while the third covers a recognisable image of her performing during The Eras Tour. The filings could strengthen her protection against AI-generated deepfakes, false endorsements and unauthorised digital impersonation.
Matthew McConaughey adopted a similar strategy before Swift. By January 2026, he had secured eight US trademark registrations covering distinctive audio and visual elements of his public persona, including a sound recording of his iconic catchphrase, “Alright, alright, alright,” and video clips featuring his likeness. His legal team explained that the strategy was intended to establish clearer legal boundaries around the authorised use of his voice and likeness in the AI era.
Jimmy Kimmel has also expanded his trademark portfolio to protect distinctive elements associated with his public persona. His actions reflect a broader effort by entertainers to exercise greater control over how their identities are reproduced and commercially used as AI-generated content becomes increasingly sophisticated.
Lionel Richie filed four US trademark applications on 11 June 2026 covering recordings of his voice saying distinctive phrases associated with his public identity. The Backstreet Boys followed on 24 June 2026 by filing a sound-trademark application covering the group saying, “Hi, we’re the Backstreet Boys.”
Collectively, these actions demonstrate how names, voices, catchphrases and likenesses are increasingly being managed as intellectual property assets rather than merely personal attributes. They also reflect a growing effort by celebrities to establish clearer legal rights before unauthorised digital content causes consumer confusion, facilitates false endorsements or commercially exploits their identities.
What Creatives, Brands and the General Public Can Learn from This AI Trademark Trend
The growing number of celebrities trademarking their voices, likenesses and catchphrases is more than a Hollywood trend. It demonstrates how artificial intelligence is changing the way identity is created, copied and commercialised.
Whether you are a musician, filmmaker, author, YouTuber, podcaster, designer, influencer, entrepreneur or business owner, your name, voice and personal brand may be among your most valuable assets. Even if you are not a public figure, AI may still be used to imitate your identity in ways that damage your reputation, mislead others or facilitate fraud.
1. Treat Your Personal Brand as Intellectual Property
Your name, logo, signature phrase, podcast title, distinctive voice or visual identity can acquire significant commercial value over time. As your audience grows, these elements become more than personal or creative expressions. They become business assets that distinguish you from competitors and influence how the public recognises your work.
Recognising their value early allows you to develop an appropriate intellectual property strategy before unauthorised use occurs. An intellectual property audit can help identify which elements of a personal or commercial brand may qualify for legal protection and where additional safeguards may be required.
2. Register Important Trademarks Early
One of the biggest lessons from celebrities such as Taylor Swift and Matthew McConaughey is the importance of acting early. Registering important trademarks before your brand becomes widely recognised may be less costly than pursuing infringement claims, rebranding a business or attempting to recover rights after another party has begun using similar identifiers.
Protecting business names, logos, slogans and distinctive catchphrases should form part of a long-term brand strategy. Before filing, appropriate trademark searches and legal assessment can help identify conflicting rights, reduce avoidable objections and ensure that applications reflect the present and future commercial use of the brand.
3. Use the Right Intellectual Property Tools
Trademark registration is only one part of effective intellectual property protection. Creatives and businesses should also secure copyright ownership of original works, maintain clear records of authorship and ownership, and preserve evidence showing how the public associates particular identifiers with their brands.
Depending on the circumstances, contracts, passing off, privacy rights and other legal remedies may provide additional protection. Because every personal and commercial brand is different, the appropriate legal strategy should reflect the nature of the identity, the markets in which it operates and the ways it generates value.
4. Monitor How AI Is Using Your Identity Online
AI-generated impersonations can spread rapidly across social media platforms, websites and digital advertising channels. Regularly monitoring your online presence can help you identify fake accounts, misleading endorsements and manipulated content before they cause significant reputational or financial harm.
Early detection may limit the damage, preserve important evidence and strengthen any legal action you later pursue. Where misuse is identified, legal assessment can help determine whether platform complaints, cease-and-desist notices, contractual remedies, regulatory complaints or court action may be appropriate.
5. Include AI Protection Clauses in Your Contracts
As AI becomes increasingly integrated into content creation, marketing and entertainment, contracts should clearly define who owns and controls the use of names, voices, likenesses and AI-generated content.
Licensing agreements, endorsement deals, employment contracts and creator collaborations should specify whether AI may be used to reproduce, modify, train on or commercially exploit a person’s identity. Clear contractual provisions can reduce uncertainty and minimise future disputes.
Businesses and creatives should also review existing agreements to determine whether they adequately address emerging AI risks. Contracts drafted before the rapid growth of generative AI may not clearly regulate voice cloning, digital replicas, synthetic content or the use of creative materials to train AI systems.
6. Businesses Should Use AI Responsibly
The legal risks associated with artificial intelligence extend beyond protecting your own brand. Using AI-generated voices, celebrity lookalikes or synthetic endorsements without proper authorisation may expose a business to trademark infringement claims, passing-off actions, false endorsement allegations and reputational damage.
Before launching AI-assisted advertising campaigns or deploying AI tools for marketing and customer engagement, businesses should conduct appropriate intellectual property due diligence and ensure that no individual’s identity is being used without lawful authorisation.
Legal review during the development stage can help businesses identify potential intellectual property, contractual, privacy and reputational risks before substantial resources are committed to a campaign.
7. You Do Not Need to Be Famous Before Your Identity Becomes Valuable
AI-related identity risks are no longer limited to celebrities. Voice-cloning software, deepfake technology and AI image generators have become widely accessible and capable of producing realistic results. Individuals may face fake voice calls, fraudulent endorsements, identity theft and digital impersonations designed to deceive family members, employers, customers or financial institutions.
Practical precautions may include registering important trademarks where appropriate, protecting original creative works through copyright, monitoring your digital footprint, promptly reporting fake accounts, reviewing privacy settings and avoiding unnecessary disclosure of personal information that may be exploited through AI systems.
As celebrities are demonstrating, proactive identity protection is becoming an important form of risk management for creatives, businesses and individuals whose identities carry personal or commercial value.
Can Nigerian Creatives and Businesses Protect Their Identities Against AI?
The answer is yes. Although Nigeria does not yet have legislation specifically regulating AI-generated identity replication, existing intellectual property, data protection and commercial laws may provide important forms of protection.
Businesses and creatives can register trademarks for distinctive names, logos, slogans and other brand identifiers through the Nigerian Trade Marks Registry. Original literary, musical, artistic, audiovisual and software works may also receive protection under the Copyright Act 2022.
Depending on the circumstances, victims of AI-generated impersonation may rely on the common law action for passing off, contractual rights, consumer protection legislation and privacy obligations under the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 where personal data has been unlawfully processed or misused.
However, the appropriate legal response may depend on how the identity was used, whether the use was commercial, the rights already owned by the affected person or business, and the jurisdiction in which the misuse occurred. Early legal assessment can help determine the most effective combination of intellectual property, contractual, regulatory and enforcement measures.
As artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated, Nigerian creatives and businesses should increasingly view intellectual property registration and legal risk assessment as preventive business strategies rather than waiting until disputes arise.
Conclusion
Artificial intelligence has changed the economics of identity. In the past, creators primarily fought to protect what they produced. Today, they must also protect who they are.
Celebrities are no longer waiting until AI misuses distinctive elements of their identities before taking legal action. Instead, they are building intellectual property portfolios that may establish clearer legal boundaries, strengthen enforcement and deter unauthorised commercial exploitation.
For creatives, brands and the general public, the lesson is clear: identity is no longer only personal. A name, voice, image, catchphrase or distinctive public persona may carry significant commercial value. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly capable of creating convincing digital replicas, protecting these assets through trademarks and complementary legal rights is becoming an important business and risk-management strategy.
Effective protection begins with understanding what makes a brand or identity distinctive, identifying the available legal rights and developing a strategy that supports both current activities and future commercial growth. For businesses, creators and public figures, this may require a broader review of trademark portfolios, copyright ownership, licensing arrangements, commercial contracts and emerging AI risks.
If your business, creative work or personal brand depends on your reputation, voice, image or distinctive identity, obtaining specialised legal guidance before misuse occurs may be more effective than attempting to recover your rights after the damage has been done.
In the age of artificial intelligence, protecting what you create is no longer enough. You must also protect the identity behind it. At Olisa Agbakoba Legal, we can help you identify, protect and strategically manage the intellectual property assets that make your personal or commercial brand distinctive.
Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.