Hollywood: Timeline of Dr. Luke-Kesha's decade-long legal battle
This Is Me singer Kesha and her former music producer Dr. Luke have reached a settlement after a legal fight that spanned several years and made the duo the center of a longstanding controversy. While Kesha had accused him of drugging and raping her, Dr. Luke defended himself and alleged that Kesha defamed him. On Thursday, however, their war finally headed toward a truce.
Here's what the duo said in their recent statement
Kesha said in her official statement, "Only God knows what happened that night. As I have always said, I cannot recount everything that happened." Meanwhile, Dr. Luke said, "I am certain that nothing happened. I never drugged or assaulted her and would never do that to anyone. It's time for me to put this difficult matter behind me and move on with my life."
Everything started back in 2005
The controversy emanated in 2005 when Kesha-Dr. Luke attended Nicky Hilton's birthday party at Paris Hilton's home. Per Kesha's lawsuit and her mother Pebe Sebert's statement, "Luke gave Kesha the date-rape drug GHB, took her back to his hotel room, and raped her while she was unconscious." Kesha called Sebert the next afternoon; she was naked and had no recollection of the previous night.
This is what Kesha said after the fateful night
Per Sebert, a distressed Kesha said on the call, "Mom, I don't know where I am. I think we had sex. I'm sore and sick. I don't know where my clothes are. I need to go to the hospital. I just want to sing. I don't want to be a rape-case victim. I want to get my music out. I didn't follow my instincts."
Dr. Luke reportedly interfered with Kesha's work
Cut to a year later, in 2006, Kesha inked a deal with DAS Communications but quit it in 2008 to re-collaborate with Luke. Kesha later said that Dr. Luke forced her to break the deal. By 2012, their relationship had worsened "with Kesha wanting to expand her range to her rock roots and Luke telling her to stick to pop-ey club hits," per Vulture.
In 2014, Kesha told the doctors about alleged sexual assault
In January 2014, Kesha got admitted to a rehab facility in Chicago where she told doctors that "Luke sexually and physically abused her, and also drugged her." In October, she filed a lawsuit against him, accusing him of sexual assault, battery, and psychological abuse, recounting the Hilton party incident and another assault event where he "violently thrashed his arms at her."
Luke filed a defamation lawsuit immediately afterward
Luke responded with a lawsuit in New York against Kesha, her mother, and manager Jack Rovner for defamation. He also filed another defamation lawsuit against Kesha's mother in Tennessee (her city of residence). In 2016, when Kesha lost the appeal to be released from Dr. Luke's Kemosabe Records, celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Jack Antonoff, and Adele came out in her support.
In 2020, court found that Kesha 'defamed' Dr. Luke
In the years following the aforementioned events, the tussle continued, while Kesha simultaneously worked on her music and became a popular artist. In 2020, Manhattan Supreme Court ruled that Kesha had defamed Dr. Luke while texting Lady Gaga in 2016. Cut to 2022, Kesha's lawyer Greg Clarick reportedly stated that "Dr. Luke gave [Kesha] a pill to feel better" before the alleged sexual assault.
Days before resolution, Kesha had won an important judgment
"On June 13, Kesha won the judgment that Dr. Luke will be considered a public figure [at the July trial], overturning a 2021 ruling. When considering [his] fame, the court wrote that "we consider whether Gottwald is a public figure such that he must prove the allegedly defamatory statements were made with actual malice," reported Vulture. Now, however, the two have "resolved the lawsuit."
