Georgia legislators filed a bill Tuesday to protect artists from their work being used in criminal proceedings against them.
The bipartisan effort focuses on prosecutors using lyrics against musicians, which legislators say can stifle creative expression. Republican State Rep. Kasey Carpenter of Dalton is lead sponsor of the legislation and the chairman of the House Committee on Creative Arts and Entertainment.
“As a big fan of 90s rap, there’s a lot of lyrics out there that could be incriminating,” Carpenter said. “I’m a big fan of Willie Nelson. He sang about a lot of incriminating things and probably still does every concert. So are we going to allow these people to be creative and speak to their audiences and not use it against them, or are we going to make them think twice before they express themselves?”
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