Katy Perry‘s artists and repertoire (A&R) manager says he feels responsible for her working with Dr. Luke on her recent album ‘143‘.
READ MORE: Katy Perry – ‘143’ review: a pop star struggles to relocate her old sense of fun
The album saw Perry reunite with the producer who helmed some of her biggest hits, including ‘I Kissed A Girl’, ‘California Gurls’ and ‘Dark Horse’. However, the news that they had worked together proved controversial following his and Kesha’s long-running legal battle.
Kesha accused the producer of emotional abuse and sexual assault in 2014, culminating in a decade-long lawsuit. Dr Luke denied the allegations and countersued Kesha, claiming she had breached the recording contract they had with one another and made up rape allegations in an attempt to get out of the deal.
Lukasz “Dr Luke” Gottwald, and Ke$ha on stage at the 28th Annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center on April 27, 2011. Credit: GETTY
Now, Perry’s A&R manager Chris Anokute has taken responsibility for reconnecting the two. In a recent The Manager’s Playbook interview, Anokute said that it was his “desire” to see the singer work with Luke again.
“I think there was some backlash on her reuniting with Dr. Luke, which was my desire,” Anokute claimed. “[It was] my recommendation for her to get back into the studio with Luke because Luke is a dear friend.”
“I thought it was a good time to reunite them after 10 years of not working together,” he continued. “Every single he’s ever done with her has gone Number One. The press just didn’t react favourably and they tried to assassinate him and her.”
Anokute went on to claim to believe that “all the stuff he was accused of is actually not true,” seemingly in reference to Kesha’s allegations.
Perry briefly responded to fan uproar regarding her decision to work with the producer back in September. During an interview on the podcast Call Her Daddy, host Alex Cooper brought up the controversy, saying many people “were really upset” about his involvement in Perry’s comeback.
Cooper then asked Perry why she chose to work with Dr. Luke, to which she responded: “I understand that it started a lot of conversations, and he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with. The reality is, it comes from me.”
She went on to say: “I am speaking from my own experience. The truth is, I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that.”
Perry didn’t mention the producer by name, instead focusing on the themes of ‘143’ and ‘Women’s World’ in particular, which she says is about: “Feeling so empowered now, as a mother, as a woman, giving birth, creating life, creating another set of organs.”
Katy Perry. Credit: Monica Schipper/Getty
Perry was brought into legal proceedings between Kesha and Dr. Luke when Kesha alleged that Perry was also a victim of abuse at the hands of the producer. Perry strongly denied this and a judge later ruled that Kesha had libelled Dr Luke by suggesting as much.
In 2018, Perry said that she “felt pressured” to support Kesha. She also revealed that she felt like “Luke was using me as a pawn” to assert his innocence and that she was “annoyed” with both parties. Dr. Luke was not involved in making her 2017 album ‘Witness’, which she added was because she didn’t want to feel like she was “picking a side”.
Kesha and Dr. Luke’s legal battle came to an end in summer 2023 with the pair settling just one month before it was supposed to go to trial. Kesha has maintained her original claims against Dr. Luke. Kesha has since seemed to respond to Perry’s work with the producer, both on stage and online.
Katy Perry. Credit: Marc Piasecki/Getty
‘143‘, was given a two-star review by NME and described as “a record that sometimes hits the target but rarely leaves a lasting impression.”
“Pop fans have a fondness for resurrecting ‘flop’ albums that were given short shrift when they first came out: Mariah Carey’s ill-fated soundtrack album ‘Glitter’ and Christina Aguilera’s sonic hodgepodge ‘Bionic’ have both become cult classics of sorts,” it read. “But even this fate seems unlikely for ‘143’, a serviceable but slightly dull collection on which Perry struggles to relocate her old sense of fun.”
In other news, Perry will be heading to space next April. Last month, aerospace company Blue Origin – which was founded by Jeff Bezos who also flew in space back in 2021 – announced the upcoming all-women mission.
The ‘Teenage Dream’ singer will join Blue Origin’s 11th human space flight alongside respected journalist Gayle King, Jeff Bezos’ fiancée Lauren Sánchez, NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, bioastronautics research scientist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Amanda Nguyen and entrepreneur/film producer Kerianne Flynn.
Perry will also embark on her 2025 ‘Lifetimes’ tour just weeks after her space launch, marking her first tour in seven years.
The post Katy Perry’s A&R manager takes blame for her working with Dr. Luke on ‘143’: “My desire, my recommendation” appeared first on NME.
