Kesha and Dr. Luke Reach Settlement: ‘Only God Knows What Happened’

Singer Kesha and producerDr. Luke have reached a settlement only weeks before their highly anticipated trial was set to begin in Manhattan.

On Thursday afternoon, the "Only Love Can Save Us Now" shared a simple message on Instagram announcing the settlement along with a statement from herself and Dr. Luke.

On Thursday afternoon, the “Something to Believe In” singer shared a statement that began, “Kesha and Dr. Luke have agreed to a resolution of the lawsuit, and have agreed to issue and post a joint statement regarding that resolution. In resolution of that lawsuit, Kesha and Dr. Luke each state the following.”

“Only God knows what happened that night,” Kesha said in her statement. “As I have always said, I cannot recount everything that happened. I am looking forward to closing the door on this chapter in my life and beginning a new one. I wish nothing but peace to all parties involved.”

“While I appreciate Kesha again acknowledging that she cannot recount what happened that night in 2005, I am absolutely certain that nothing happened,” Dr. Luke said in his statement. “I never drugged or assaulted her and would never do that to anyone.”

He went on to say, “For the sake of my family, I have vigorously fought to clear my name for nearly 10 years. It is time for me to put this difficult matter behind me and move on with my life. I wish Kesha well."

In 2014, Kesha filed a lawsuit against her longtime music producer Dr. Luke, claiming that he sexually, physically, verbally, and emotionally betrayed her. In a statement made at the time, her lawyer, Mark Geragos, told People magazine, “We are prepared to fight until he agrees to get out of her life once and for all.”

He explained that the abuse had been going on for years but did not feel comfortable taking action against him. “She’s made efforts, [but] she is not a confrontational person,” he said. “The efforts were always met with psychological warfare, [predatory behavior] and things of that ilk. She finally got to a place where she is surrounded by people that are supportive enough that she felt like she could finally do it, and felt like she needed to do it. She just couldn’t go on this way. Getting out of the contract is really secondary to extricating herself from his control.”

“I have spent quite a bit of time with her recently and I would say her mindset is as good as I have seen it,” said Geragos. “Obviously nobody wants to get embroiled in litigation and making things public like this, but she understands she has to take a stand. I applaud her bravery for speaking to a broader societal issue of domestic violence. This speaks to an untold story in this industry and society at large.”

Dr. Luke denied the allegations, and filed a countersuit against both Kesha and her mother, Pebe Sebert, for breach of contract and defamation. His lawyer, Christine Lepera, told People magazine that “Kesha and her mother are engaged in a campaign of publishing outrageous and untrue statements about Dr. Luke to third parties, including scurrilous and false statements of purported physical and mental abuse of Kesha.”

Lepera went on to say, “Kesha and her mother Pebe have wielded these defamatory statements in an attempt to extort [him] into releasing Kesha from her exclusive recording agreement with Dr. Luke.”

Earlier this month, the “Fine Line” singer released her fifth studio album, Gag Order. It was released by both RCA Records and Kemosabe Records. This will be her final album under Kemosabe due to a contract that the 36-year-old singer signed when she was only 18.

A few days after her album was released in May, the “Too Far Gone” singer sat down for an interview with the U.S. Sun to discuss her collaboration with producer Rick Rubin and stated that she wanted to "empower" individuals with her new album.

“I always wanted to empower people, to lift them and encourage them to love themselves,” she said. “I have beautiful moments — I cry from happiness. And the same day, I can also have severe anxiety seven hours later. It was a disservice not to let people know that my emotions come in and out like ocean tides.”

“Rick told me that the best song is a prayer. And that’s stuck with me — that’s how I look at my music,” she explained. “It’s not my job. It’s not just an activity I do that I enjoy. It’s a prayer. And hopefully, that can echo out to other people, and they can relate to it,” she added.

Later this year, Kesha will embark on a small domestic tour to promote her new album. The tour starts on October 15, in Dallas, Texas, and will conclude in Los Angeles, California, on November 18.