Sony Music will end its working relationship with Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald amid pressure from Kesha (full name Kesha Rose Sebert) supporters calling for his termination. The pop singer has accused Gottwald of sexual, physical, emotional and verbal abuse while serving as her music producer.
The 29-year-old Kesha filed a lawsuit against Gottwald and Sony to exit her deal in October 2014. She is signed to the producer's Kemosabe Records, an imprint at Sony. A New York Supreme Court recently denied her a preliminary injunction that would have allowed her to record music outside of Kemosabe.
Gottwald is reportedly signed to a five-year contract with Sony, ending in early 2017. The 42-year-old writer-producer has denied the abuse allegations, breaking his silence last month on Twitter and writing, "I didn't rape Kesha and I never had sex with her. Kesha and I were friends for many years and she was like my little sister."
Gottwald has not been convicted of any crime, giving Sony no legal basis to fire him. He and the music company would need to come to a mutual agreement to terminate his contract.
"There is no contest. Kesha has no case in regards to her contract but they can't afford the Adeles of the world out in the streets calling the label unsupportive," a Sony insider told TheWrap. "The fact that this hasn't already been taken care of is confusing, especially for people in the building."
Kesha has received support from many female recording artists including Adele, Lady Gaga, Kelly Clarkson and Taylor Swift. The "Die Young" singer thanked her fans and supporters while accepting the Visibility Award for her contribution to the LGBT community at the Human Rights Campaign's 2016 Nashville Equality Dinner on March 5.
"I'm going through some personal things that have been really intense and hard lately and I just want to say thank you for any support I've received," she said. "My message today is don't be afraid to speak up against any injustice you experience. Don't let people scare or shame you into changing the things about you that make you unique."
Gottwald is behind Sony hits such as Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball," Pitbull's "Timber" (featuring Kesha) and songs by Nicki Minaj. His attorney is denying TheWrap's report.
"Luke has an excellent relationship with Sony," the attorney told TMZ. "His representatives are in regular contact with executives at the highest levels at Sony, and this has never come up."
