Despite her attempts to break free, Kesha has long been locked into a recording contract with Dr. Luke and Sony. For years, her fans believed Kesha’s creativity was being stifled by the renowned songwriter/producer. The tumultuous situation only intensified in late 2014 when Kesha filed a civil lawsuit alleging that Dr. Luke (née Lukasz Gottwald) had been sexually abusing her nearly a decade — starting when she was only 18 years old.
This morning, Kesha received what’s sadly become commonplace news for her and her camp: Legally, she is bound to Sony until she fulfills the requirements of her contract, and, more importantly, she still must continue working with Gottwald.
The ruling came down from Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich, and effectively quashed Kesha’s request for a temporary injunction which would have voided her Sony deal and made it possible to escape having to work alongside her alleged rapist.
Sony had previously said Kesha was allowed to collaborate with other producers. However, the “Tik Tok” singer strongly believes that any subsequent releases done sans Gottwald would likely not be promoted properly as the major label values the star producer far more than Kesha.
Defending her decision, Judge Kornreich said that granting an injunction would result in Sony suffering “irreparable harm,” as the label would never receive the remaining six Kesha albums required by the contract. As the New York Daily News reports, she also noted that nullifying the original record deal would “undermine the state’s laws governing contracts.”
In response to the civil lawsuit two years ago, Gottwald called Kesha “a liar” and accused her of extortion. To this day, he has yet to be criminally charged.
Update – Monday, February 22nd at 4:40 p.m. CT: Gottwald has made his first public comments since Friday’s court ruling. “I didn’t rape Kesha and I have never had sex with her,” he tweeted. “Kesha and I were friends for many years and she was like my little sister.” He added, “Imagine if you or somebody you loved was publicly accused of a rape you knew they didn’t do. Imagine that.”
Gottwald also noted that in a 2011 deposition Kesha denied allegations of sexual assault (Kesha’s attorney claims those statement were made under duress following alleged threats from Gottwald).
Update – Monday, March 21st at 4:45 p.m. CT: Kesha has formally appealed Judge Korneich’s ruling against an injunction, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Her lawyer, Mark Geragos, likened the judge’s ruling to promoting slavery.
Read his tweets below.
