Hoping to be able to pursue her music career, Kesha has made the decision to drop the lawsuit against her producer, Lukasz Gottwald, known to us as Dr Luke. With the legal battle still ongoing, Kesha has not been able to make any new music since the release of 2012's Warrior.
'Kesha has dismissed her California action without prejudice while she pursues her appeal and other legal claims in the New York courts,' Daniel Petrocelli, the singer's legal counsel, said in a statement to Rolling Stone. 'Kesha is focused on getting back to work and has delivered 28 new songs to the record label. We have conveyed to Sony and the label Kesha's strong desire to release her next album and single as soon as possible.'
On the 23rd May we wrote...
While the Billboard Music Awards last night celebrated the hottest music talent, there was one singer in who stole the show: Kesha.
The 29-year old singer received a standing ovation for her moving, stripped back cover of Bob Dylan's classic ‘It Ain’t Me Babe’, accompanied by her friend Ben Folds on piano.
The star made a brave statement, as she's still embroiled in legal struggles against her former producer, Dr. Luke. His record label - Kemosabe Records - reportedly barred her performance on Sunday night initially, worried she would use it as a platform to discuss the ongoing litigation.
On the 7th April we wrote...
According to a report by TMZ, Kesha has lost her court case against producer Dr Luke after a New York judge dismissed her case from the court. This follows the singer's decision to appeal the previous ruling, made in February this year, which decreed that Kesha would have to remain contracted to Sony and Dr Luke.
The judge sided with Sony and rejected all of Kesha's claims, including her lawyer's previous argument that the 28-year-old is now a 'slave' to her record label.
TMZ reports that the judge viewed Kesha's claims as 'unreasonable,' as her label may have made other producers available to work with her.
In response to Kesha's description of herself as a victim of a 'hate crime,' the judge stated that 'Although [Dr Luke's] alleged actions were directed to Kesha, who is female, [her claims] do not allege that [he] harboured animus toward women or was motivated by gender animus when he allegedly behaved violently toward Kesha,' before adding, 'Every rape is not a gender-motivated hate crime.'
The singer is yet to comment on this ruling.
On April 5th we wrote...
In the case of Kesha versus Dr Luke, another bombshell has dropped: the revelation that if she 'took back' allegations that she was raped by music producer Dr Luke, she would be released from the contract that ties her to him.
Taking to Instagram to make the claims, Kesha, 28, wrote:
'so. I got offered my freedom IF i were to lie. I would have to APOLOGIZE publicly and say that I never got raped. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS behind closed doors. I will not take back the TRUTH. I would rather let the truth ruin my career than lie for a monster ever again.'
In 2014, Kesha filed a lawsuit requesting permission to be released from her six-album deal with Sony as a result of sexual assault, harassment, unfair business practices and intentional infliction of emotional distress caused by Dr Luke.
Since a judge ruled against her earlier this year, the singer has received support from across the world, with a number of high profile stars leaping to her defence to condemn the decision.
Dr Luke, meanwhile, maintains the claims are false, and in a recent statement in Rolling Stones magazine, a spokesperson wrote:
'The Court repeatedly stated Kesha is already free to record without Dr Luke, and that she had not presented any facts supporting her claims... the only thing Kesha is not free to do is to continue to lie about Dr Luke through publicity stunts and outrageous smears, ignoring the fact that by her own free will she went to work and entered into new contracts with Dr Luke years after this ‘incident’ supposedly happened.'
This distressing battle continues...
On 22nd March, we wrote...
Kesha has filed an appeal against the court ruling that kept her in her recording contract with music producer Dr. Luke.
The appeal likens Kesha’s current legal obligation to modern day slavery, stating: ‘the Court erred in basing its decision on its finding that Kesha could record without interference from Gottwalk. Although it recognised that “slavery was done away with a long time ago” and that “[y]ou can’t force someone to work […] in a situation in which they don’t want to work,” the Court’s ruling requiring Kesha to work for Gottwald’s companies, purportedly without his involvement, does just that. As the Court itself recognised, “[i]t’s slavery. You can’t do that.’
The singer’s legal team also took issue with Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich’s opinion that Kesha’s career would not suffer ‘irreparable harm’ if she was forced to fulfil the contract. Lawyer Mark Geragos explained that ‘affidavits by individuals with over 100 years of collective personal experience in the music industry’ were assembled to ‘attes[t] to the fact that a young star’s fame will fade quickly and permanently, due to a loss of momentum.’
As the contract currently stands, the singer is legally unable to record music without Dr. Luke.
Kesha's ongoing legal case has been met with an outpouring of support from fellow artists, including Adele, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande.
On 8th March we wrote:
As the legal battle between singer Kesha and producer Dr. Luke continues inside the courtroom and on social media, in the outside world Kesha has been awarded the Human Rights Campaign's Visibility Award for her work supporting the LGBT community.
Whilst accepting the award at the 2016 Nashville Equality Dinner, she thanked everyone for her support during the ongoing legal case between Dr. Luke and Sony.
‘For any of you who know, I'm going through some personal things that have been really intense and hard lately, and I just want to say thank you for any support I've received,’ she explained.
'My message today is don't be afraid to speak up against any injustice you experience.
‘Don't let people scare or shame you into changing the things about you that make you unique.’
You can watch her whole speech here (skip to 9.00 minutes)
On 24th February we wrote:
Kesha has spoken out following the court ruling which saw a judge deny the singer’s request to be released from her recording contract with super-producer Dr. Luke, who Kesha claims physically and sexually assaulted her.
Taking to Facebook, Kesha wrote, ‘This case has never been about a renegotiation of my record contract – it was never about getting a bigger, or a better deal,’ she explained.
‘This is about being free from my abuser. I would be willing to work with Sony if they do the right thing and break all ties that bind me to my abuser.’
Read her full statement on Facebook here.
On 20nd February we wrote:
The ongoing legal battle between the Kesha - real name Kesha Rose Sebert - and Lukasz Gottwald, AKA Dr. Luke has sent shockwaves though the music industry, dividing public opinion and notably causing a social media storm on all public platforms.
As a quick recap, Kesha, 28, is looking to break free from her six-album deal with Sony, specifically the ties she has to Dr. Luke, after claiming the producer raped her in 2006, shortly after the singer’s 18th birthday.
After working professionally with Dr. Luke for nearly 10 years (she was signed to Dr. Luke’s Kemosabe Entertainment label in 2005 when she was 18 years old), Kesha sued Dr. Luke on October 14, 2014, accusing him of abuse during her time at his label.
The lawsuit read: ‘Dr. Luke abused Ms. Sebert in order to destroy her self-confidence, self-image, and self-worth so that he could maintain complete control over her life and career’.
Whilst Dr. Luke has denied all allegations against him and is countersuing for breach of contract and defamation, the legal battle between the pair shows no sign of coming to an end, continuing to play out in both the courts and on social media.