Emaza Gibson claims in her lawsuit Derulo signed her to his new record label in 2021.
Jason Derulo is being sued by a woman claiming he signed her to his record label but then terminated her deal after she continually refused his alleged sexual advances.
Emaza Gibson filed court documents in Los Angeles County Superior Court claiming the "Talk Dirty" singer "maliciously promised" to make her a successful singer when he contacted her in August 2021 about joining his new record label. In court documents, obtained by ET, Gibson claims Derulo told her that, as part of the new record label, he needed to find a new artist and he chose her.
Gibson claims she eagerly accepted Derulo's offer to work for him and as part of the deal he "promised to make multiple music albums with [her]." She claims he officially became her mentor and supervisor in November 2021. But things quickly went downhill from there, she claims.
While recording music one day, Gibson claims Derulo told her that "if she wanted to be successful in 'this business' (aka, the music industry), [Gibson] would be required to partake in 'goat skin and fish scales,' which is a Haitian reference referring to conducting sex rituals, sacrificing a goat, goat blood and doing cocaine."
ET has reached out to Derulo for comment. NBC News was first to report the lawsuit. Not long after the lawsuit made headlines, Derulo responded with a short statement denying the allegations.
"I wouldn't normally comment but these claims are completely false and hurtful," he says in a video posted on Instagram. "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."
In response to Derulo's statement, Gibson's attorney, Ron Zambrano, responded in a statement to ET saying, "If Derulo truly remained supportive of anyone following their dreams, he would acknowledge the pain and suffering he caused Emaza and aim to be a better person."
"He should be offended by these allegations, as should everyone, including his fans," the statement continued. "Emaza is certainly offended by his dismissive attitude. The entire music industry is due for a #MeToo movement. This sort of conduct is pervasive but it takes brave people like Emaza to come out of the shadows and share their stories to finally bring an end to this shameful behavior."
Gibson claims that the manner and timing of such a statement meant that Derulo was demanding sexual acts from her in order for Derulo to fulfill his role as her mentor, supervisor and musical collaborator.
"This explicit demand for sex-in-exchange-for-success was reinforced through Derulo's subsequent behavior," the court documents state.
Gibson claims Derulo, through text messages, repeatedly invited her to have drinks and dinner with him at a "member's only lounge" on multiple occasions, but she declined and insisted on keeping their relationship purely professional.
She claims Derulo would often schedule recording sessions at late-night hours between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. During these recording sessions, Gibson claims Derulo constantly pressured her to drink with him despite her repeatedly telling him she's not a drinker. She claims that during a September 2021 recording session, she finally gave in and had a sip of a drink before informing him the drink was too strong.
"Seemingly satisfied his persistent pressure and coercion was bearing fruit, Derulo encouraged [Gibson] to take another sip, but [Gibson] refused," the court documents claim, alleging that "after this session, where [Gibson] declined to drink and have sex with Derulo, the offer to arrange for [Gibson] to get to and from Derulo's studio ceased."
Gibson claims she also feared for her safety while around Derulo. She claims he flew into a fit of rage following a meeting with record executives in New York City, where she claims her work was supposed to be showcased. Instead, Gibson claims Derulo, at the last minute, brought a different female artist to the meeting. When she confronted him about the last-minute change during the drive back from the meeting, Gibson claims Derulo "immediately lost control and began aggressively hitting his arm rests screaming."
"Being trapped and afraid in the back of the car with an irate Derulo, [Gibson] merely stayed quiet during the rest of the car ride, mortified of what Derulo would do next," the court documents claim.
Gibson claims this incident forced her to bring her mom/manager with her to any future meetings or sessions with Derulo out of concern for her own safety. She also points to another alleged scary incident, where she claims Derulo charged at her in front of her mom and several others present after she arrived late to a studio session.
She claims Derulo "lunged at her causing her to step back and clutched her chest to brace herself for Derulo to physically assault her." Gibson claims Derulo "screamed within inches" of her face. She claims her mom tried to defuse the situation, to no avail. Gibson claims Derulo eventually "realized the aggressive manner in which he invaded [Gibson's] personal space and the inappropriate volume of his voice, then attempted to give her a hug."
Gibson claims one of Derulo's engineers checked on her after she raced to the bathroom. As she cried, Gibson claims the engineer told her not to worry about it and explained Derulo's demeanor as "tough love."
She claims she saw the writing on the wall when she asked for a project manager and didn't get one, as well as having to pay for her own recording studio time for several months. Then, on Sept. 6, 2022, Gibson claims she was informed her employment with Derulo's label was being terminated, effective immediately. As for why, Gibson claims she was told they wanted her to be happy. She claims she asked to speak to a record label executives but she was turned down.
She claims she made repeated attempts to contact human resources via email but never heard from anyone after she voiced her concerns over Derulo's "sexually, emotionally and physically inappropriate behavior towards her."
Gibson is suing for sexual harassment, intimidation and violence, illegal retaliatory termination and breach of contract, among other things.
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