Music mogul Dr Luke’s lawyer has released a statement denying his client engaged in misconduct following the release of private messages he allegedly sent to Kesha and her manager.
On Wednesday, the New York Post published information from correspondence they received from Kesha’s team that contained heated exchanges between the 43-year-old hitmaker, real name Lukasz Gottwald, and the singer’s manager, Monica Cornia.
They reportedly included his lewd words of criticism towards the singer’s appearance.
In one email from June 2012, Luke defended comments he had allegedly made to Kesha after he caught her breaking her diet.
“Nobody was calling anybody out,” he told Cornia. “We were having a discussion on how she can be more disciplined with her diet. there have been many times we have all witnessed her breaking her diet plan. this particular (sic) time – it happened to be diet coke and turkey while on an all juice fast.”
Cornia tried to convince Luke to be more supportive of the singer, insisting she is “a human and not a machine”.
Another email details Luke’s concerns that Kesha’s figure was putting potential collaborators off the idea of working with the singer.
“A-list songwriters and producers are reluctant to give Kesha their songs because of her weight,” he reportedly wrote.
Dr Luke’s lawyer Christine Lepera has released a statement to Billboard, claiming the messages were taken out of context.
“Kesha and her representatives improperly publicised, without Court permission, three out-of-context emails which do not present the full picture regarding the events they concern,” part of the statement reads.
Kesha and her estranged mentor have been at the centre of an intense legal battle since 2014 when the 29-year-old attempted to sue him for sexual assault and emotional abuse she alleged occurred during the 10 years they worked together.
The following year, she sought a preliminary injunction to sever ties with his record label, Kemosabe. The request was denied and all other charges filed by the star have since been dismissed in court.
