Kesha's legal battle with producer Dr Luke (real name Lukasz Gottwald) has taken a new turn.
The singer's attorney has filed paperwork to appeal last month's decision by New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich to deny Kesha a preliminary injunction. If granted, it would have allowed her to record outside of her contract.
What to Read Next
Kesha's attorney Mark Geragos has written in a court brief that the decision was comparable to allowing "slavery".
"The Court erred in basing its decision on its finding that Kesha could record without interference from Gottwald," it argues (via The Hollywood Reporter).
"Although it recognised that 'slavery was done away with a long time ago' and that '[you] can't force someone to work... in a situation in which they don't want to work', the Court's ruling requiring Kesha to work for Gottwald's companies, purportedly without his involvement, does just that."
Geragos also states Judge Kornreich didn't pay enough attention to the declarations from industry veterans about the harm that Kesha would endure without the issuing of an injunction.
He adds that the offer made by Sony Music to allow her to record without Dr Luke's involvement is an "illusory promise".
"The Court did not explain, nor could it, why any potential harm to SME could not adequately be compensated by money damages if it were to prevail in the litigation," the statement continued.
"Indeed, SME, Gottwald, and all the related entities are each free to make music (and money) with other young talent. In the event they prevail in the litigation, they can recover money damages from Kesha for her breach of contract."
Lawyers for Dr Luke later replied: "[Kesha's] attorneys can continue manufacturing even more false and outrageous claims, but the fact remains that her time would be better spent in a studio than wasting time having her lawyer and mother spin lies in the media."
Dr Luke has presented Kesha's allegations of sexual misconduct - which he has denied - as financially motivated and is pursuing his own case against her for breaching contract.
Kesha has received unwavering support from her fans and many in the entertainment world, with Adele, Lady Gaga and Demi Lovato among those who have publicly backed the 'Tik Tok' singer.
Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
