Jason Derulo says claims made against him that he sexually harassed and intimidated his former artiste, Emaza Gibson, are false and defamatory.
The singer, who is well-known for songs like “Swalla,” was named in a lawsuit by Gibson filed days ago in which she claims that shortly after Derulo signed her to his label, he requested sex from her. After repeated advances, he and Atlantic later terminated her contract.
According to Gibson, she signed the deal in 2021 to his label Future History, which is an outfit of Atlantic Records. However, things quickly took a turn for the worse as Derulo began to make “explicit” demands for sexual favors. In one instance, she described him “berating” her at a party, which caused her to break down in tears. The artist later ghosted her, and her deal was terminated on September 22, 2022, without any notice or explanation, the lawsuit said.
One part of the claim reads, “the manner and timing of such a statement meant that Derulo was demanding sexual acts from plaintiff in return for Derulo being her mentor, supervisor, and musical collaborator… This explicit demand for sex-in-exchange-for-success was reinforced through Derulo’s subsequent behavior.”
Emaza also alleged that the artist told her that in the music business, she would be “required” to consent to sex and cocaine use. The 30-page claim also lists several incidents in which he left her alone with another woman who claimed they were in a sexual relationship and then shouted at her and became aggressive after she questioned him about it.
Emaza Gibson started to bring her mother to meetings, but this caused him to become upset. In one instance, she said he “charged at plaintiff” in front of her mother, a videographer, and an engineer and “lunged” at her because she was late due to traffic. Gibson’s mother later told Derulo’s manager about the incident, but he said that “[Derulo] is his own man and … I’m not his master.”
The lawsuit filed last Thursday names Derulo, his manager, Future History, and Atlantic Records as defendants. It also names RCA Records, a division of Sony Music ‘as a partner in Future History. Her claim further says that Derulo’s abusive behavior was enabled by the co-defendants, and they failed to act regarding his breach of contract to her. She also claims that when she approached Derulo about the contract ending, he became aggressive and intimidated her.
“I reached out for help, and I didn’t get that help. This has been scary the whole entire time. The aggressions, him charging toward me. I felt so unsafe, I had to get my parents involved,” her affidavit read.
In the meantime, Derulo has denied wrongdoing as he released a scripted video message on his Instagram platform. “I wouldn’t normally comment but these claims are completely false and hurtful,” his statement on Instagram read.
He recited the same statement in a video and continued, “I stand against all forms of harassment, and I remain supportive of anybody following their dreams. I’ve always strived to live my life in a positively impactful way, and that’s why I sit here before you deeply offended, by these defamatory claims. God bless.”
