"This case arises from Coca-Cola's pirating Johnny Cash's voice in a nationwide advertising campaign to enrich itself without asking for permission or providing any compensation to the humble man and artist who created the goodwill from which Coca-Cola now profits, the complaint said. Stealing the voice of an artist is theft. It is theft of his integrity, identity and humanity, said Tim Warnock, a lawyer for the Cash estate."
"A representative for Barker told Billboard magazine that his team was thrilled when we were approached to have Shawn sing vocals for this commercial. His manager Joey Waterman said: Shawn Barker has been performing with his Cash tribute The Man in Black: A Tribute to Johnny Cash for over two decades, touring the world sharing his love of Johnny Cash's music and stories with fans both old and new."
The estate of Johnny Cash filed a lawsuit against Coca-Cola for hiring a tribute performer to impersonate Cash's voice in a nationwide advertisement without seeking permission. The claim invokes Tennessee's new Elvis Act, which protects a person's voice from exploitation without consent. The estate said it has previously licensed Cash's songs but was not approached for this ad. The lawsuit seeks an injunction to remove the ad, damages under the Elvis Act, and damages for alleged violations of Tennessee consumer protections. Coca-Cola has not commented. The tribute singer is Shawn Barker, represented by a team and manager who said they were thrilled to participate.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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