On Monday, numerous depositions from Dr. Luke’s ongoing defamation lawsuit against Kesha following her sexual assault allegation against him were unsealed. In a heavily redacted deposition given in July 2017, Katy Perry denies the assertion that she has ever been sexually assaulted by Dr. Luke, a rumor Lady Gaga and Kesha had previously attributed to an unnamed music industry CEO. The CEO, identified as Interscope Geffen A&M Records exec John Janick in court documents, also says he does not recall hearing or repeating any rumors about Katy Perry experiencing any assault to either singer. However, in her deposition, Lady Gaga maintains Janick did bring up the rumor to both her and Kesha during a meeting. “He said something like, ‘I heard he raped Katy, too,’†the singer claims.
A number of other performers were deposed as part of the lawsuit, including Kelly Clarkson, who expressed her personal dislike for the producer. (You can read the depositions, and the case’s many other filings, here.) “In general, I don’t know anyone that likes him,†said Clarkson, recalling that RCA had informed her Pink reportedly did not like working with Dr. Luke either. “I was told via my label because they’re like, you know, we’re having a hard time with him working with other people. And then they said, actually, almost every female at our label doesn’t like working with him.â€
On the heels of the documents being unsealed, Dr. Luke’s legal team issued a statement Monday, calling Kesha’s claim that she was raped by the producer a “malicious act†fabricated to help get her out of her contract. “Kesha admits she voluntarily had at least four drinks while partying,†they say of October 5, 2005, the night Kesha alleges Dr. Like assaulted her. “Because she drank too much, she got sick, and threw up in Paris Hilton’s closet.â€
The statement goes on to claim Kesha “maliciously plotted to destroy Dr. Luke’s business and reputation†with the help of her managers Jack Rovner and Ken Levitan, and music exec Irving Azoff (whom, as you might recall, Nicki Minaj accused of launching a “smear campaign†against her on behalf of client Travis Scott). The statement cites emails from 2012 in which the three express hope that the “deluge of negative media attention†around Kesha’s claims would effectively “ruin†Dr. Luke. Wrote Rovner, “Please keep the Jihad going.â€