Kesha Sues Producer Dr. Luke for Abuse, Forced Drug Use; He Countersues
In a stunning series of allegations, Kesha claims that her producer, Dr. Luke (real name: Lukasz Gottwald), abused her sexually, emotionally, verbally, and physically for over a decade.
Her bombshell lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday and obtained by Yahoo, features many disturbing details, including a claim that Dr. Luke, 41, made sexual overtures toward the pop star when she was 18 and bullied her into taking drugs and booze to lower her inhibitions. The suit paints Dr. Luke as a predator, who convinced Kesha, now 27, to drop out of high school, leave her family, and move to Los Angeles to become a star.
In a statement to Yahoo, Luke pointed out that she attempted to break her contract and insisted her lawsuit was riddled with "scurrilous and false statements." He has filed a countersuit.
For her part, Kesha, who completed a stint in rehab last March to treat an eating disoder, paints a disturbing picture of her life in the music industry.
[Related: Kesha Opens Up About Eating Disorder]
One particularly lurid incident detailed in the lawsuit claims Dr. Luke gave her something he called "sober pills" which allegedly made her unconscious. She said she woke up the next morning in Dr. Luke's hotel bed, naked, sore, and with no memory of how she got there. The suit contends that Kesha later learned the pills were a form of GHB, commonly referred to as the "date rape drug."
The lawsuit also mentions an alleged "talk" that Dr. Luke had with Kesha in which he threatened to destroy her career and the lives of her family members if she ever mentioned the incident.
At another point in the lawsuit, Kesha claims to have been frightened after Dr. Luke approached her while "violently thrashing his arms." She says she ran away barefoot and hid in the mountains.
He also, according to the lawsuit, frequently criticized her weight and musical skills. The suit contends Dr. Luke called her a "fat f---ing refrigerator" and that he would tell her that she "was not that pretty" or "talented" and that she was "lucky" to have him.
Kesha's lawyer, Mark Geragos, perhaps most famous for his defense of Michael Jackson and Winona Ryder, issued the following statement to Yahoo:
“This lawsuit is a wholehearted effort by Kesha to regain control of her music career and her personal freedom after suffering for ten years as a victim of mental manipulation, emotional abuse and an instance of sexual assault at the hands of Dr. Luke. The facts presented in our lawsuit paint a picture of a man who is controlling and willing to commit horrible acts of abuse in an attempt to intimidate an impressionable, talented, young female artist into submission for his personal gain. Kesha is focused on moving her life and her career beyond this terrible time.”
Almost immediately after she filed her lawsuit, Dr. Luke countersued in New York and released the following statement via his legal team:
"As set forth in the complaint that we have filed on behalf of Dr. Luke, Kesha and her mother are engaged in a campaign of publishing outrageous and untrue statements about Dr. Luke to third parties, including scurrilous and false statements of purported physical and mental abuse of Kesha. These are allegations that Kesha and Pebe have themselves admitted are false. The complaint explains that Kesha and her mother Pebe have wielded these defamatory statements in an attempt to extort Gottwald into releasing Kesha from her exclusive recording agreement with Dr. Luke.
"We understand that Kesha has filed a lawsuit of her own against Dr. Luke, though we have not yet seen it. Undoubtedly, Kesha's lawsuit is nothing more than a continuation of her bad and offensive acts. We are confident that Dr. Luke will prevail in all matters, and that our client will be awarded substantial damages for this malicious conduct."
Dr. Luke vs. Kesha Countersuit
The dueling lawsuits come after months of reported strife between Kesha and her producer, Rolling Stone reports. Earlier this year, the singer's mother Pebe Sebert told People magazine that Dr. Luke had contributed to her daughter's eating disorder.
"Dr. Luke had been telling her how she had to get in shape and lose weight and all this stuff. She was exercising and dieting and ultimately doing everything she could, but not getting thin fast enough. And that's when she first became bulimic."
A representative for the producer denied that claim.