Lady Gaga has been a vocal supporter of Kesha throughout her legal battle with Dr. Luke, who Kesha accuses of assaulting her. Even after she was subpoenaed to testify in the case, Gaga remained firm in her support of Kesha and the belief that she was telling the truth about Dr. Luke’s misconduct.
Gaga’s deposition, which dates back to September 12th, 2017, was unsealed in court on Tuesday, and it finds Gaga repeatedly defending Kesha’s credibility while questioning the motives of Dr. Luke’s legal team (via Variety).
“What I recall was her immense sadness and depression and fear,” Gaga said of her first encounter of Kesha at Dr. Luke’s home studio. “She was visibly very different than when I had seen her before, and—but I can’t say specifically what we spoke about. I just recall it was emotional and I wanted to be there for her.”
Gaga was repeatedly asked if she had “personal knowledge or information” to validate Kesha’s claims.
“Yes, I do have knowledge,” Gaga answered. “She told me that he assaulted her.” When asked to provide further evidence to support her claim, Gaga replied, “Well, you know—when men assault women, they don’t invite people over to watch.”
“And when this happens in this industry, it is kept extremely secret, and it is compounded by contracts and manipulative power scenarios that actually include this very situation that we are all in right now,” Gaga added.
Dr. Luke’s lawyer then asked Gaga if she believes there’s “never been a false accusation of rape,” to which Gaga responded, “You—how about all of the women that are accused of being liars and how she was slut shamed in front of the world, how about that?”
“I have factual knowledge of trauma. I am informed and intelligent about this issue,” Gaga continued, referencing her own experience with sexual assault. She said “[Kesha] has experienced serious trauma and she is in the middle of it right now. And you are all a party to it.”
Dr. Luke’s lawyer again attempted to question Gaga’s firsthand knowledge of the alleged assault, asking, “You weren’t there, correct?” Gaga responded, “Why on earth would this girl tell the entire world this happened? Why on earth? Do you know what it’s like for survivors? Do you know what it’s like to tell people? Don’t you roll your eyes at me. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Gaga was also asked to address Dr. Luke’s reputation in the wake of the allegations, to which she remarked, “Reputation, if you are asking about his reputation in the world, I don’t feel at liberty to speak for the entire world. So if you are asking what my view is of his reputation, I made my view of him and his reputation when I saw her in that back room. That was an image that—of something that happened to me, and I felt and knew in my heart that she was telling the truth, and I believe her.”
Meanwhile, Kesha’s legal team filed documents on Tuesday arguing that she is not liable for allegedly defamatory claims made against Dr. Luke, according to Billboard. The filling came in response to a summary-judgment motion by Dr. Luke’s attorneys, which sought to hold Kesha responsible for statements she made about Dr. Luke in the past, including that Dr. Luke allegedly raped Katy Perry. Kesha and Gaga previously testified that they had heard of those specific allegations from Interscope CEO John Janick. For their part, Perry and Dr. Luke both denied the claim in their own sworn depositions.
In their filing, Kesha’s attorneys argued:
“Kesha only knows what Mr. Janick told her; she cannot state definitively what happened between Dr. Luke and Katy Perry—that remains a triable issue of fact. Indeed, for obvious reasons, an alleged rapist’s denial is hardly proof that the rape did not occur. And victims often deny sexual abuse, particularly when the perpetrator and victim share a personal or professional relationship; that is precisely why domestic-violence prosecutions often proceed in the face of a denial of abuse.”
In response, Dr. Luke’s legal team called Kesha “disrespectful and hypocritical” for not taking Perry at her word.
“Dr. Luke has asked the Court to rule that Kesha’s accusation that he raped Katy Perry is false. In response, Kesha has made the disgraceful suggestion that Dr. Luke may have actually raped Katy Perry – refusing to take Katy Perry at her word,” said the statement. “Kesha knows full well that Katy Perry denied that false and baseless claim under oath. Kesha’s continued refusal to acknowledge the truth has caused pain for everyone she has dragged into her increasingly absurd accusations.”
