On Sunday, pop singer Kesha Sebert alleged that she was offered her “freedom” if she agreed “to APOLOGIZE publicly and say that I never got raped.” Sebert is contractually bound to Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald, who is both the producer behind some of her biggest hits and, Sebert alleges, her abuser and rapist.
Sebert’s efforts to extricate herself from her contract with Gottwald’s label, Kemosabe Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment, have so far been unsuccessful. In February, her request for a preliminary injunction, which would have allowed Sebert to continue recording music outside of Sony, was denied.
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Rolling Stone reports that a source close to the case confirmed “a dialogue between the singer and Gottwald’s legal teams” took place “a couple months ago,” at which point the “option toward terminating her contract was given to the singer. It’s unclear, however, whether that option occurred during formal settlement talks between the two parties or if the idea was simply proposed to Kesha’s team.”
Why Sony Doesn’t Want To Let Kesha Out Of Her Contract With Her Alleged AbuserWhy can’t Kesha get out of her contract? On Friday, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich declined to grant…thinkprogress.orgA spokesperson for Gottwald released a statement to Rolling Stone which did not deviate, at all, from Gottwald’s previous words on the case, though it used even more virulent language than before:
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.
Since 2014, Sebert has been trying to get out of her contract. She alleges that, in addition to raping and abusing her for years, Gottwald subjected her to unfair business proceedings. His abuse almost killed her, she claims, and resulted in her developing an eating disorder and seeking treatment for two months at a rehab facility. She alleges she did not come forward sooner — and that she had previously said, on the record, that Gottwald never raped her — because Gottwald made her fear for her life, threatening to destroy her career if she were to accuse him publicly. Gottwald has consistently denied all of Sebert’s allegations.
Sebert’s problem is a complicated one. Gottwald has not been convicted, or even tried, in criminal court; there is no proof that he failed to uphold his end of the contract. Sony, too, is technically not in breach of contract. As Deborah Wagnon, attorney and associate professor specializing in recording industry legal issues in the College of Media and Entertainment at Middle Tennessee State University, told ThinkProgress after Sebert’s case in February, “there’s not really a mechanism, in contract law, for her to address what she’s trying to do.” In an interview with Billboard, Sebert’s lawyer, Mark Geragos, told the magazine that he couldn’t think of any precedent for what Sebert was hoping to do — be cut loose from a contract because of physical or sexual abuse — and described Sebert’s lawsuit a “first-of-its-kind case.”
Sony Will Reportedly Drop Dr. Luke Amid Kesha’s Rape Allegations, PR FalloutPop singer Kesha Rose Sebert has been trying to get out of her recording contract since 2014. She alleges that mega…thinkprogress.orgEven if Sony wanted to take her side and “free” her, they are not really in a position to do so: Sebert’s contract is with Gottwald and Kemosabe. As an attorney for Sony, Scott A. Edelman, told the New York Times, “Sony is not in a position to terminate the contractual relationship between Luke and Kesha.” Sebert has a separate deal with Gottwald’s production company, Kasz Money Inc, through which she is signed to Kemosabe. “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,” Edelman said.
Sony could cut ties with Gottwald altogether. Gottwald’s contract reportedly runs out in 2017; last month, sources inside Sony told The Wrap that the label was planning to terminate it ahead of schedule. (Gottwald’s attorney denied those reports.) Or Sony, Gottwald, and Sebert could still agree to settle, in which case, Sebert would have to buy her way out of her contract. She likely owes millions against the four or so albums she contractually owes her label and hasn’t recorded yet. As we’ve noted before, anyone who believes Sebert’s allegations could read that outcome in an especially horrifying way: Sebert would, essentially, be paying her abuser for raping her.