Kesha Suffers Setback

Kesha’s four-year battle to remove herself from recording contracts with her producer and alleged abuser Dr. Luke has suffered another setback, with her latest appeal being rejected by a New York court.

The appeal in question related to a denied countersuit from March 2017 against Dr. Luke, aka Lukas Gottwald. Gottwald sued Kesha for defamation in 2014, shortly after the singer alleged that he had “sexually, physically, verbally, and emotionally abused [Kesha] to the point where [she] nearly lost her life.”

Kesha, full name Kesha Rose Sebert, countersued, stating that she is owed royalties and that it’s impossible for her to perform while her legal ties to Gottwald remained in place.

“You can get a divorce from an abusive spouse,” began her proposed countersuit. “You can dissolve a partnership if the relationship becomes irreconcilable. The same opportunity – to be liberated from the physical, emotional, and financial bondage of a destructive relationship – should be available to a recording artist.”

Currently, Kesha must release music through her label Sony and imprint Kemosabe Records, which Gottwald owns. While Sony allowed Sebert to work on last year’s album Rainbow without Gottwald’s oversight, the album itself – which featured powerful ballads on self-healing – was still a profit source for her alleged abuser.

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Kesha’s appeal was denied yesterday. The court cited the same claims as the original denial – that Kesha failed to provide notice of contract breaches or prove that it was impossible for her to perform, with the judge citing Kesha’s recent and upcoming tours, which includes dates in Australia this October.

Under her current contract, Kesha will have to release three more albums with Kemosabe Records.