On Friday, a judge ruled against Kesha’s request to be released from her recording contract with Sony and producer Dr. Luke’s Kemosabe label due to his alleged history of abuse against her. In the following days, fellow musicians have thrown their support behind Kesha, who, by contract, must continue to release music with Sony and, specifically, with Dr. Luke. In a series of tweets today, producer Jack Antonoff, who has worked with Taylor Swift (on “Out of the Woods”), Grimes, Troye Sivan, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Sia, threw his support to the singer, offering to help Kesha record new music and, depending on the legal specifics, either leak it or “wait on it till that creep can’t block you anymore.” It’s worth noting that Antonoff’s Bleachers is signed to RCA Records, a Sony label, though any sort of collaboration with Kesha, as Antonoff implies, would likely fall outside the bounds of a traditional contract and, if leaked, do little to help her financial situation.
Earlier today, Dr. Luke’s camp released a statement arguing that Kesha is, in fact, free to release music without working with the producer and that her family has subjected him to “trial by Twitter.” While Kesha’s lawyers have not commented on this statement, her team has argued in the past that Sony’s claim that it has given Kesha the opportunity to record without Dr. Luke’s involvement is an “illusory promise” and alleged that the label would not promote music made outside the producer’s auspices, thus setting the singer up for failure. Sony, at the hearing, said that it is invested in the success of both Kesha and Dr. Luke, but that those interests “are not in the least bit mutually exclusive.”
