On Friday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law that would limit courts’ use of rap lyrics as evidence in criminal cases.

The Decriminalizing Artistic Expression Act states that a court is required “in a criminal proceeding where a party seeks to admit as evidence a form of creative expression, to consider specified factors when balancing the probative value of that evidence against the substantial danger of undue prejudice. ” The bill was met with unanimous approval in the California Senate and Assembly in August—the first in the nation.

“Artists of all kinds should be able to create without the fear of unfair and prejudicial prosecution,” Newsom said in a statement on Friday. “California’s culture and entertainment industry sets trends around the world and it’s fitting that our state is taking a nation-leading role to protect creative expression and ensure that artists are not criminalized under biased policies.”

After the legislation was signed, rapper ice Cube told TMZ that he supported the move, comparing rap lyrics to suspense novels: “They ain’t gonna arrest Stephen King for his words.”

The law came a few months after rapper Yung Thug was indicted by a grand jury in Atlanta, Georgia, after he and other members of the “criminal street gang” YSLof which Yung Thug is a co-founding member, were accused of a slew of crimes, including violating RICO, attempted murder and murder. The indictment cited lyrics from nine songs by the artist, including “Smith & Wesson .45 put a hole in his heart / Better not play with me, killers they stay with me.” Yung Thug will be behind bars until his trial in January 2023; in June, he asked people to sign a petition asking for legislators to enact laws that limit the use of lyrics as court evidence.

“This is unprecedented racism,” said Dina LaPolt, entertainment lawyer and co-founder of Songwriters of North America, about the use of lyrics as evidence in court.

A number of rap artists made a virtual appearance at the bill signing ceremony on Friday, including Killer Mike, Meek Mill, Too $hort, Ty Dolla $ign, YG, E-40 and Tyga.

At the signing ceremony, LaPolt also offered support for the move: “For too long, prosecutors in California have used rap lyrics as a convenient way to lyrics-cant-be-used-evidence-newsom-california-new-bill-1235389803/”>inject racial bias and confusion into the criminal justice process. This legislation sets up important guardrails that will help courts hold prosecutors accountable and prevent them from criminalizing Black and Brown artistic expression.”

In July, the Restoring Artistic Protection (RAP) Act was introduced in the US House of Representatives, and would also restrict the extent to which lyrics could be admitted as evidence against a defendant. Rep. Jamal Bowman (DN.Y.), a co-sponsor of the bill, said: “We cannot imprison our talented artists for expressing their experiences nor will we let their creativity be suppressed.”