On Friday, February 19, a Manhattan judge denied Kesha an injunction to be released from her Sony contract with music producer Dr. Luke, despite her allegations that he has been physically, sexually and mentally abusive to her throughout the decade that they’ve worked together.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich made the decision after hearing arguments from both Kesha (née Kesha Rose Sebert) and Dr. Luke (born Lukasz Gottwald).
“You’re asking the court to decimate a contract that was heavily negotiated and typical for the industry,” the judge told Kesha’s attorney, Mark Geragos, adding that her instinct was “to do the commercially reasonable thing.”
Dr. Luke’s lawyers argued that the music producer had invested about $60 million into the “Tik Tok” singer’s career, and had already agreed to allow her to record with Sony without his involvement — arrangements that Kornreich considered reasonable.
Meanwhile, Geragos argued that because the career life span of a pop star is short, if the injunction didn’t go through, then Kesha’s career was as good as over.
“We are pleased with the Court’s decision from the bench fully denying Kesha’s motion for a preliminary injunction. As the Court recognized, Kesha has always had the ability to proceed with her career if she so chooses,” Christine Lepera, Dr. Luke’s attorney, told Us. “We remain confident that when all the facts are presented that Kesha’s allegations against Luke will be shown to be completely false and were asserted solely to extort money and gain contractual leverage.”
In October 2014, Kesha, 28, filed a lawsuit against the producer, 42, claiming that he had been abusive toward her since she signed on with him at age 18. She had said that he would force drugs and alcohol on her in an attempt to make sexual advances.
One instance in particular involved Gottwald giving her what he called “sober pills.” Kesha claimed she awoke the next morning naked in his bed “sore and sick with no memory of how she got there.”
Dr. Luke then allegedly took her on a walk on the beach alone to “have a talk” with her.
“He threatened that if she ever mentioned the rape to anyone, he would shut her career down, take away all her publishing and recording rights, and otherwise destroy not only her life but her entire family’s lives as well,” Geragos told Us Weekly at the time. “Ms. Sebert wholly believed that Dr. Luke had the power and money to carry out his threats; she therefore never dared talk about, let alone report, what Dr. Luke had done to her.”
