Many of pop music’s biggest female stars spent the weekend voicing their support for singer Kesha, who lost a court case against allegedly-abusive producer Dr. Luke this past Friday. The court ruled that the singer was obligated to fulfill a multi-album deal with Sony Records regardless of the allegations. Kesha alleges that she was drugged, sexually assaulted, and psychologically abused when she started working with Dr. Luke ten years ago. The singer first sued Dr. Luke in 2014.
Superstars like Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and Lorde have voiced their support for Kesha, but Taylor Swift is the first of Kesha’s contemporaries to donate money; Swift has reportedly donated a quarter of a million dollars to the musician to help her cause.
“In a show of support, Taylor Swift has donated $250,000 to Kesha to help with any of her financial needs during this trying time,” said a spokesperson from Swift’s camp.
Kesha is still seeking to be released from her contract with Dr. Luke and Sony Music, which would allow her to make other music. That said, at this point, legal outcomes look grim for the artist; Friday’s ruling came from justice Shirley Kornreich of the New York Supreme Court — among the highest courts in the land for this sort of suit.
In her remarks about the ruling, the justice said that she would be unable to tear up Kesha’s contract based on unproven allegations, saying, “You’re asking the court to decimate a contract that was heavily negotiated and typical for the industry.” The ruling came after Dr. Luke testified that he had invested $60 million dollars towards Kesha’s career to date.
It’s unclear exactly how Swift’s donation could help Kesha — perhaps Kesha’s legal team will manage to form another legal strategy to fight the label, or perhaps the singer will go with a new legal team entirely. Either way, with such a definitive ruling in place, it will likely take some creative strategies not leaning heavily on the contract to help Kesha in the matter.
Kesha has yet to issue a comment about Swift’s donation, though her mother has tweeted in support of Swift’s efforts.
