In a partially unsealed deposition obtained by E! News, Perry said she and Dr. Luke (whose real name is Lucasz Gottwald) never had a romantic relationship and that he never assaulted her. An attorney asked the singer, “Did Dr. Luke ever rape you?” to which she replied, “No.”
When asked, “Did Dr. Luke ever sexually assault you?” Perry said, “Absolutely not.”
The Witness artist also denied every having a sexual or romantic relationship with Dr. Luke. Last week, Perry fought to have her deposition sealed as Dr. Luke’s defamation suit against Kesha continues on.
Perry fits into the lawsuit because Kesha texted Lady Gaga about an alleged incident involving Dr. Luke and Perry. The producer’s attorneys at the time said that Kesha told Gaga that Perry was “raped by the same man,” referring to Dr. Luke. That information reportedly came from CEO of Interscope Records John Janick because of a rumor he heard.
In her deposition, Perry said she never told Janick about the purported rape and that “it’s not true.”
Following the release of the transcript excerpts, a rep for Janick issued a statement to Variety: “As his deposition makes clear, John Janick was simply a bystander to a conversation; not a participant in it. Although John is not a party to this litigation, he voluntarily provided factual responses to questions from both sides’ attorneys.”
The “Joanne” singer has not commented publicly about the texts.
Dr. Luke and Kesha’s bitter legal battle goes back to 2014 when the “Praying” singer first sued him for sexual assault and battery. The producer denied the claims, writing on Twitter in 2016, “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.”
Yesterday, E! News received responses from both Dr. Luke’s and Kesha’s attorneys regarding the matter. Dr. Luke’s lawyers frame the lawsuit as a revenge plot by the “TiK ToK” singer due to disagreements over contract negotiations. “When Dr. Luke did not agree to her contract terms, Kesha maliciously plotted to destroy Dr. Luke’s business and reputation to pressure him to give in,” the statement sent to E! News said. His legal team provided emails from Kesha’s managers who, according to the statement, “discussed in emails their ‘jihad’ to ‘ruin’ Dr. Luke ‘in the press’ and ‘take down his business.'”
Source: News Agencies
