Kesha Says She Spent ‘Millions’ in Legal Fees Battling Dr. Luke

Kesha says she’s feeling “gratitude” and “happiness” after releasing “Joyride,” her first single as an independent artist after parting ways with Dr. Luke‘s Kemosabe Records and RCA.

Speaking with Forbes, the 37-year-old singer-songwriter opened up about the the relief she feels, not only since sharing “Joyride,” but also after settling her legal battle with Kemosabe Records founder Dr. Luke. Kesha accused Luke of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse in 2014. Luke steadfastly denied the claims and sued her for defamation, but it was still nearly a decade before the pair settled the case out of court a year ago.

“I feel free for the first time since I was 18 years old,” she said. “I so appreciate every single person that has streamed ‘Joyride,’ and I love the videos that are being made. I’ve spent almost 10 years in litigation and millions of dollars in legal fees. This joy has been hard-fought for me, so I love that people are ready to ‘Joyride’ with me.”

“Joyride” was released under Kesha’s own label, one she hopes will be “a safe space for artists because creation and fear cannot co-exist,” she said. “When you’re in a state of fear, you cannot create, and I know this from personal experience.”

In alignment with expanding her own label (Kesha Records), Kesha unpacked a long list of goals for the future, starting with a concerted effort to change the litigation surrounding the protected rights of an artist’s recorded voice.

“It’s wild that a human being can lose the rights to their recorded voice in perpetuity in the universe,” she said, adding that she’s currently “looking into the tech space and I’m looking to find partners who have the values that I align with… I’m also looking to the future and I’m looking for some really creative, boundary-pushing, innovative tech creators that want to change how the music business works and bring a new level of transparency to the whole business.”