An unsealed deposition obtained by The Blast, demonstrated that, when interrogated by Dr. Luke's lawyers, Lady Gaga stood up for fellow pop star Kesha.
Kesha and her one-time music producer Dr. Luke (born Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald) have been locked in legal battle for years. In 2014, Kesha alleged that Dr. Luke sexually assaulted her as well as emotionally abused her during their time working together. Kesha asked the courts to free her from Dr. Luke’s Sony-based label. The request was denied in February of 2016. (The following year, Sony split from the producer.)
Gaga, a friend of Kesha’s, was pulled into this legal battle when text messages between Gaga and Kesha — which allege that Katy Perry was sexually assaulted by Dr. Luke, a thing which both Perry and Dr. Luke vehemently deny — were provided as evidence in court. Due to these messages, Gaga was subpoenaed and deposed in September of 2017, per Rolling Stone.
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Now, what Gaga said in court has been revealed. Her deposition reveals that the singer was a firm supporter of Kesha, saying that she had "factual knowledge" of Kesha's trauma.
Per the deposition, Gaga told Dr. Luke’s lawyers that Kesha told Gaga that Dr. Luke assaulted her. When asked by the lawyers if she had any proof, Gaga reportedly replied: “When men assault women, they don’t invite people over to watch.”
Gaga, herself a survivor of sexual abuse, also claimed in the deposition that she saw a noticeable emotional shift in Kesha.
Said Gaga, “I have factual knowledge of [Kesha Sebert's] depression. I have factual knowledge of her need for support and love. I have factual knowledge of the spiral that I watched that girl go down. I have factual knowledge of trauma. I am informed and intelligent about this issue. That girl has experienced serious trauma and she is in the middle of the right now. And you are all a party to it.”
Gaga, who reportedly became emotional during the questioning, added: “Why on earth would this girl tell the entire world this happened? Why on earth? Do you know what it’s like for survivors? Do you know what it’s like to tell people? Don’t you roll your eyes at me. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Dr. Luke has denied all abuse against Kesha and countersued her for defamation. In a statement to Refinery29, representatives for Dr. Luke said:
"Being passionate about a topic that concerns us all is admirable. However, Lady Gaga has no knowledge of what happened on the night at issue because she was not there. The actual evidence shows, among other things [that] Kesha got kicked out of a party after drinking too much and vomiting. As an act of kindness, Dr. Luke offered to allow her to sleep in his hotel suite, a few blocks away. Kesha slept on the bed in the hotel suite, while Dr. Luke separately slept on the couch. Dr. Luke testified under oath that he did not have any contact with Kesha. Kesha herself admitted under oath that she has absolutely no memory of Dr. Luke even being in the hotel room. Kesha has no memory of Dr. Luke engaging in inappropriate contact with her because it did not happen."
Refinery29 has reached out to representatives for Kesha and Gaga for comment.
This post has been updated to include Dr. Luke's statement.