The producer’s legal team previously accused Kesha of circulating the rumor that he raped Perry.
“The false narrative Kesha created about being raped became widely accepted, damaging Dr. Luke’s reputation irreparably. Compounding this malicious act, in 2016, Kesha toldLady Gagathat Dr. Luke rapedKaty Perry, which is outrageous and untrue,” Dr. Luke’s attorneys said in the statement on Monday.
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In her response, also issued on Monday, Kesha denied making such claims.
“But, to be clear, Dr. Luke is suing Kesha based on a private, one-on-one text message that Kesha sentLady Gagain 2016, shortly after Interscope CEO John Janick told Kesha andLady Gagahe’d heard a rumor that Dr. Luke had also abusedKaty Perry. Mr. Janick’s statement was discussed privately between the two friends and would never have become public, except that Dr. Luke decided to publish it to millions of people in his 2017 complaint against Kesha. This defamation claim, based on a private text message which was based on the statement of a third party, is also frivolous.”
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Meanwhile, Gaga confirmed Janick’s conversation in her deposition.
“He said he had heard a rumor. … I don’t recall exactly the way he said it. I just recall that it was brought up. … He said something like I heard [Dr. Luke] raped Katy [Perry], too,” Gaga said.
Mark Sagliocco/WireImage; Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty; Jason Merritt/Getty
Luke’s team previously alleged Perry denied the assault in a statement to PEOPLE.
Meanwhile, another pop star spoke out against Dr. Luke in her own deposition.
Kelly Clarksontestified that the producer can be a “bully and demeaning,” saying, “In general, I don’t know anyone that likes him. … People have said he is sleazy. People have said he is belittling, the same kind of things that I say. He is very, I mean, just to be blunt, he can be kind of a bully and demeaning. I don’t like him as a person.”
Reps for Perry and Clarkson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Kesha and Dr. Luke have been embroiled in a bitter legal battle since 2014, when Kesha sued her former mentor, alleging Luke had drugged andraped herand verbally and emotionally abused her for a decade.
Luke has vehemently denied the allegations and countersued Kesha for breach of contract and defamation. In February 2016, Luke tweeted: “I didn’t rape Kesha and I have never had sex with her. Kesha and I were friends for many years and she was like my little sister.”
A judgedismissed Kesha’s abuse claimsin 2016, but the lawsuit rages on.
Kesha dropped her third album,Rainbow, last summer, when it peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. She is still tied to Luke through her recording contract with his company.
source: people.com
