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Johnny Cash Estate Sues Coca-Cola Over Ad Allegedly Mimicking His Voice

The Tennessee filing invokes the new ELVIS Act to challenge an NCAA campaign’s Cash-like vocal.

Overview

  • The lawsuit, filed this week in Tennessee, seeks damages exceeding $75,000.
  • The complaint targets Coca-Cola’s 2025 NCAA “Fan Work Is Thirsty Work” campaign for using a vocal made to resemble Cash.
  • The estate says an agency hired a tribute singer and cites a social media post as evidence of intent to evoke Cash’s voice.
  • The suit highlights that Cash’s voice has been licensed only twice since 2003, both for Super Bowl ads.
  • The ELVIS Act is cited to assert protections against unauthorized commercial use of a person’s voice, and Coca-Cola has not commented.