Not holding back. Kesha took to Instagram on Sunday, April 3, to tell fans that she was given an opportunity to be released from her six-record contract with Sony if she were to publicly retract her allegations against Dr. Luke of mental, physical and sexual abuse.
“so. I got offered my freedom IF i were to lie,” the “Tik Tok” songstress, 29, wrote alongside a makeup-free selfie. “I would have to APOLOGIZE publicly and say that I never got raped.”
The pop star then stated that she would never recant her claims made about Dr. Luke, not even if that meant she would be completely set free from the hands of her alleged abuser and Kemosabe Records, the label the famed hitmaker oversees for Sony.
“THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS behind closed doors. I will not take back the TRUTH,” she wrote. “I would rather let the truth ruin my career than lie for a monster ever again.”
However, a spokesperson for Dr. Luke tells Us in a statement: “Kesha’s Instagram posting is false. The Court repeatedly stated Kesha is already free to record without Dr. Luke, and that she had not presented any facts supporting her claims. That’s because all the evidence — including Kesha’s own videotaped sworn testimony — show her allegations are false. 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. Her goal all along has been solely personal enrichment by seeking to break contracts that brought her success and millions so she can enter into more lucrative ones. We look forward to our day in court holding Kesha accountable for her lies.”
As Us Weekly previously reported, on February 19 a Manhattan judge denied Kesha’s motion to be let go from her contractual working obligations with Dr. Luke (real name: Lukasz Gottwald).
According to The Hollywood Reporter, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich made the ruling after listening to arguments from both Kesha and Dr. Luke, 42.
“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 has vehemently refuted his former collaborator’s claims of rape and abuse. “I didn’t rape Kesha and I have never had sex with her,” he tweeted on February 22. “Kesha and I were friends for many years and she was like my little sister.”
His lawyers reiterated the denial in a statement to Us that same day. “As Dr. Luke has said repeatedly, the allegations against him are outright lies that have been advanced to extort a contract renegotiation and money,” the statement read. “Kesha and her counsel have cavalierly subjected Dr. Luke and his family to trial by Twitter, using a vicious smear campaign to ruin his reputation for financial gain while failing to support their claims. Kesha to date has never verified the allegations in this case — even when given the opportunity in her affidavit. Nor has she ever offered a credible explanation as to why she would have signed a second recording agreement, recorded two albums and an EP and signed a publishing deal with Dr. Luke after allegedly being sexually abused. It will further be shown that the incidents alleged never happened.”
Sony previously explained that they are unable to break Kesha’s contract with Dr. Luke.
“Sony has made it possible for Kesha to record without any connection, involvement or interaction with Luke whatsoever, but Sony is not in a position to terminate the contractual relationship between Luke and Kesha,” Scott A. Edelman, an attorney representing the music conglomerate, told The New York Times on February 25. “Sony is doing everything it can to support the artist in these circumstances, but is legally unable to terminate the contract to which it is not a party.”
On March, 21, Kesha filed paperwork to appeal the court ruling. A new court date has yet to be scheduled. In the meantime, Kesha continues to receive an incredible amount of support from fellow female musicians. Artists such as Kelly Clarkson, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande and Demi Lovato have come to the embattled singer’s defense.
