Kesha & Dr. Luke settle lawsuit, he withdraws defamation case

2023-06-23

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Kesha signed with Dr. Luke and his Kemosabe Records label when she was 18. In October 2014 Kesha, then 26, sued Dr. Luke to get out of her contract with him and Kemosabe Records, accusing him of sexual assault (specifically rape in 2005), drugging and verbal and physical abuse. Dr. Luke immediately countersued for defamation, calling Kesha a liar and an extortionist. In February 2016 Kesha’s injunction to be allowed to break her contract was thrown out by a judge on the New York Supreme Court, who decided to stick to a literal interpretation of the language in Kesha’s contract, citing that Kemosabe agreed to let Kesha record without Dr. Luke being involved… but he was still head of Kemosabe which would be producing the music. Kesha’s attorney had tried arguing that while yes, Kesha could technically record music without Dr. Luke’s involvement in the studio, when it came time to promoting and releasing the music out into the world, her career was still in Dr. Luke’s hands. One month later the same judge denied Kesha’s appeal and offered the still-perplexing reasoning: “Every rape is not a gender-motivated hate crime.”

Between the pandemic and Kesha withdrawing various suits against Dr. Luke, progress seemed to stall in their litigation–although public support was very much on Kesha’s side. Kesha released three albums–Rainbow (2017), High Ground (2020) and Gag Order (2023)–but all still under Kemosabe Records and making money for Dr. Luke. His defamation case was supposed to go to trial in July 2023, but in early June the New York Court of Appeals reversed a decision from a lower court, which made his case harder to prove. The Court of Appeals asserted that Dr. Luke was a public figure, and, in legal terms, that greatly raised the bar (intentional pun, we can still sprinkle in humor here) for him to prove that Kesha had acted with malice against him. That court also said that Kesha should have been allowed to file counterclaims against Dr. Luke for distress and damages.

Which brings us to yesterday’s news, announced via a “joint” statement, that Dr. Luke was withdrawing his defamation case because he and Kesha had settled:

“Only God knows what happened that night,” Kesha wrote in the statement shared on Instagram. “As I have always said, I cannot recount everything that happened. I am looking forward to closing the door on this chapter of my life and beginning a new one. I wish nothing but peace to all parties involved.”

Dr. Luke, whose real name is Lukasz Gottwald, has continued to deny the claims made by the singer.

“While I appreciated Kesha again acknowledging that she cannot recount what happened that night in 2005,” his statement reads, “I am absolutely certain that nothing happened. I never drugged or assaulted her and would never do that to anyone. For the sake of my family, I have vigorously fought to clear my name for nearly 10 years. It is time for me to put this difficult matter behind me and move on with my life. I wish Kesha well.”

[From The Guardian]

“While I appreciate Kesha again acknowledging that she cannot recount what happened that night in 2005, I am absolutely certain that nothing happened.” WHAT. A. DICK. I mean, we knew that about him, but you would think this would be the one instance where lawyers and managers would insist upon a calmer tone. Passive-aggression aside, the words from both of them are clearly the result of painstaking negotiation between attorneys, and I find it kind of fascinating. What were those discussions? How much money did each word cost each side? And speaking of, what’s conspicuously absent from all the reporting is how much was paid and by whom. I think as part of the settlement, we’re never going to get that info.

I hope this “resolution” really does bring closure for Kesha. As we’ve noted recently, she’s been looking great, and I hope at least part of that is down to finally making him pay.

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