Long Story Short: Taylor Swift's recent trademark filings for voice recordings have sparked conversations about whether a voice can function as a trademark. While the legal questions surrounding these filings are still evolving, Canadian trademark law already recognizes sound marks. For organizations building strong brands, distinctive sounds and audio signatures may represent an often-overlooked intellectual property asset, particularly as AI-generated content makes voice and brand imitation easier than ever.
Speak Now: Your Brand Is More Than a Logo
In April 2026, Taylor Swift filed trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for two voice recordings and an image. According to trademark attorneys following the filings, the applications appear aimed at addressing a growing concern: AI-generated content that imitates a person’s voice without permission.
In one of the clips, Swift is heard promoting her album on Amazon Music. In the other, she directs fans to pre-save a release on Spotify. The goal is straightforward: to establish a legal basis for challenging any AI-generated audio that mimics her voice in commerce.
While the filings have attracted significant attention because of Swift’s celebrity status, they raise a broader question for businesses: can a distinctive sound—or even a recognizable voice—become a trademark?
Attempting to register a celebrity’s spoken voice as a trademark is a novel use of trademark law that has not yet been tested in court. But the underlying concept, that a distinctive sound can function as a trademark, is well established. And in Canada, sound trademarks are expressly recognized under the Trademarks Act.
Are You Ready For It? Sound Marks Are Already Part of Canadian Trademark Law
Most people think of trademarks as names, logos, or slogans. However, Canada has long recognized that a trademark can consist of a sound.
Some of the most recognizable examples globally include the Intel chime and the MGM lion’s roar. These sounds function exactly like a logo, immediately communicating the source of a product or service without a word or image in sight.
Under Canadian trademark law and the Trademarks Regulations, an applicant seeking to register a sound mark must include in their application:
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- A clear and concise written description of the sound
- An electronic recording of the sound in MP3 format, not exceeding 10MB
- The recording must not contain any looping or repetition, and must not include sounds that do not form part of the trademark.
- Evidence demonstrating that the sound is distinctive and functions as a trademark
- As with any trademark, the key requirement is distinctiveness. The sound must identify the source of goods or services rather than simply serving a functional purpose (a standard tone or generic alert is unlikely to qualify but a carefully crafted, consistently used audio signature can).
- An acceptable description
- An example, as provided by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO), would be: “The trademark consists of the sound of a lion’s roar, the audio representation of which is included in the application.”
Long Live: Why Distinctiveness Matters
The biggest challenge for most sound mark applications is proving that the sound has become associated with a particular brand.
Think of a sound mark the same way you would think of a logo. A logo only becomes valuable because consumers repeatedly encounter it and connect it with a business. The same principle applies to sound.
Organizations that successfully build sound trademarks typically use them consistently and treat them like logos, such as at the opening of advertisements and across marketing campaigns, during the launch of an app, and in video content, while making extensive sales of the goods and products with which the sound trademark is associated.
Over time, consumers begins to recognize the sound as a source identifier rather than simply background noise.
For non-traditional marks, including sounds, where the mark is not considered inherently distinctive, applicants must demonstrate “acquired distinctiveness.” In Canada, this requires evidence that through use in the marketplace, the public has come to associate the sound with a specific source of goods or services.
The evidence must be strong and convincing, and typically includes the duration and extent of use, sales volumes, advertising expenditure, and consumer surveys or affidavits demonstrating that the public recognition.
The evidentiary bar is high, but for organizations that have invested in building a recognizable audio identity, registration may be achievable. It is worth noting that where distinctiveness is established only in certain regions of Canada, CIPO may permit the application to proceed with registration restricted to a defined territorial area.
Look What You Made Me Do: What Does This Have to Do With Taylor Swift and AI?
The more interesting question raised by Swift’s filings is not whether sounds can be trademarks. Canadian law already answers that question. Instead the filings point to an emerging use of trademark law to address AI-related risks.
Traditional copyright law protects recordings from direct copying, but it does not prevent AI tools from generating new audio content that closely mimics a voice without reproducing any existing recording. Trademark law, at least in theory, could help fill that gap. If the voice or vocal performance is sufficiently distinctive and consistently associated with a brand in commerce.
In Canada, the same framework would apply. A specific, consistently used vocal performance that consumers associate with a particular brand could potentially qualify for sound mark protection.
It’s important to note that what trademark law will not protect is a voice in the abstract. It does not grant ownership over a general vocal style, a type of tone, or a vocal characteristic. The protection, if any, attaches to the specific branded use, not the underlying voice itself.
You Belong With Me: Building a Broader Voice Protection Strategy
It is also worth noting that trademark protection in this context is only one piece of the puzzle and sits alongside other legal tools. Organizations concerned about unauthorized voice replication should also consider:
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- Copyright protection for recordings and scripts,
- Personality and publicity rights,
- Contractual protections in voice licensing agreements,
- Consumer protection laws governing deceptive marketing.
In Canada, using a voice that closely imitates a recognizable person in a commercial context could attract liability under the doctrine of misappropriation of personality or passing off, even where no trademark registration exists.
As AI-generated content becomes more sophisticated, businesses may need to think more strategically about how they protect both traditional and non-traditional brand assets.
Ready For It?: Practical Takeaways for Brand Owners
Taylor Swift’s filings are a timely reminder that sound remains an often underused dimension of trademark and broader IP strategies. For organizations investing heavily in brand recognition, a distinctive audio signature, whether a musical phrase, a spoken brand identifier, or a crafted sound, can be a valuable asset. As AI lowers the barriers to creating convincing imitations of voices, images, and other brand elements, protecting those assets becomes increasingly important.
For businesses considering sound mark protection in Canada:
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- Treat audio branding as intentionally as visual branding.
- Use sounds consistently across customer touchpoints.
- Document use and brand recognition over time.
- Consider whether distinctive audio elements may qualify for trademark protection.
- Evaluate sound marks as part of a broader intellectual property strategy.
That recognition takes time and intentional use to build, but once established, it can be among the most powerful forms of trademark protection available.
The law surrounding AI-generated voice content is still developing, in Canada as elsewhere. What Taylor Swift’s filings make clear is that brand owners are already testing its limits, and are beginning to explore new ways to protect the assets that make their brands recognizable—and sound may be one of the next frontiers.
Is your intellectual property strategy keeping pace with emerging technologies?
Stratford Intellectual Property works with organizations to identify, protect, and maximize the value of their intellectual property assets. Contact our team to discuss how trademarks, patents, and broader IP strategy can support your business objectives.
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