Kesha accuses her former producer Dr Luke of sexual assault

Kesha is set to sue her former producer and mentor Dr Luke for physical and sexual abuse.

In a report by TMZ,  Kesha has claimed the producer - real name Lukasz Gottwald -  would ply her with drugs and alchohol, be physically violent towards her and, on one occasion, forced himself on her. In another instance the producer apparently gave the singer what he described as "sober pills" which resulted in Kesha waking up the following afternoon, naked in Dr. Luke's bed with no memory of how she got there,

This is not the first time that Kesha has accused the producer of abusive behaviour. She claimed back in January that Luke was responsible for her developing an eating disorder, including describing her as  "a fat f***ing refrigerator."

Kesha's lawyer, Mark Geragos, explained to TMZ. "This lawsuit is a wholehearted effort by Kesha to regain control of her music career and her personal freedom after suffering for ten years as a victim of mental manipulation, emotional abuse and an instance of sexual assault at the hands of Dr. Luke. The facts presented in our lawsuit paint a picture of a man who is controlling and willing to commit horrible acts of abuse in an attempt to intimidate an impressionable, talented, young female artist into submission for his personal gain. Kesha is focused on moving her life and her career beyond this terrible time." 

Dr Luke has co-written or co-produced more than 30 Top ten singles since 2004 and including Miley Cyrus 'Wrecking Ball', Kelly Clarkson's Since You've Been Gone and Katy Perry's Roar. He signed Kesha when she was 18 and produced her first key tracks 'Right Round' and 'Tik Tok'.

In a lengthy article with the New Yorker last year it describes how Kesha and Luke disagreed over the next step in her career, particularly when the singer claimed she did not want to sing the lyrics to 'Die Young' but "was FORCED to.” When asked about the singer by the magazine Dr Luke said simply “I haven’t heard from her in a while.”