Music mogul L.A. Reid is being sued for sexual assault.
According to court documents filed in New York on Wednesday and obtained by Page Six, former Arista Records executive Drew Dixon accuses Antonio Marquis “L.A.” Reid of sexually assaulting her in 2001.
In the civil suit, which was first reported on by Rolling Stone, Dixon claims Reid, now 67, sexually assaulted her once on a private plane and once in the back of his private car while she was employed by him.
Dixon further alleges that Reid began making advances at her before he officially joined the team at Arista by inviting her to tour apartments with him, during which he allegedly “made flirtatious comments.”
The former Vice President of A&R claims in the court filing that the first incident of sexual assault happened in January 2001 during a flight to a company retreat in Puerto Rico.
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Dixon claims in the lawsuit that Reid started “playing with her hair, kissing her and digitally penetrat[ing] her vulva without her consent” while she was seated next to him on the plane to go over work plans.
After the trip, Dixon says she tried her best to maintain a positive work atmosphere “without succumbing to Mr. Reid’s sexual advances,” some of which allegedly included late-night calls and requests for hotel room meetings.
The second alleged incident happened during a car ride with Reid in which a driver was present.
The suit claims that the music exec “began to grope and kiss Ms. Dixon” without her permission once more, and she “squirmed and pushed him away.”
“When Mr. Reid complained and became visibly irritated with her lack of compliance, Ms. Dixon froze,” the documents say.
“Mr. Reid again digitally penetrated Ms. Dixon’s vulva without her consent.”
After the second incident, Dixon alleges that Reid began cutting her budget and not giving her artists the time of day, even allegedly rejecting a young John Legend.
She decided she had no other choice but to leave Arista and eventually quit the music business altogether.
Dixon claims her career never recovered from such a devastating blow.
“L.A. Reid is a known predator, who uses his singular professional power to force himself on his victims,” Dixon alleged in a statement to Rolling Stone.
“In my case, his persistent campaign of sexual harassment and assault forced me to abandon the work I loved when I was at the top of my game in the music business, having worked my way up from internships and a job as a receptionist.”
Dixon is seeking general and punitive damages plus legal fees in the suit.
She is suing Reid more than 20 years after the alleged assaults under the Adult Survivors Act, a look-back passed in New York last year that allows civil lawsuits to be filed by any sexual abuse survivor who was above the age of 18 when their alleged abuse occurred.
The eligibility window granted by the act closes on Nov. 24.
“Drew was at the pinnacle of her career, collaborating with music legends and identifying future stars when she began working closely with L.A. Reid, who up until that time was a trusted industry peer,” Dixon’s attorney, Kenya Davis, said in a statement to Rolling Stone.
“As soon as he became CEO of Arista Records, he leveraged his position of authority to sexually harass and assault her.”
“The Adult Survivors Act is a critical tool in holding perpetrators accountable, and we look forward to fighting for Drew and other victims of sexual misconduct whose careers have suffered as a result of them speaking out.”
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In 2017, Reid was accused of sexual assault by an assistant at Epic Records, where he was the chairman and CEO.
The former “X-Factor” judge, who helped kickstart the careers of stars such as Usher, Toni Braxton, TLC, Mariah Carey and more, subsequently left his position.
Reid previously apologized to Dixon, saying his actions may have been “misinterpreted,” via a statement after she accused him of sexual and workplace harassment in a 2017 interview with The New York Times.
Reid did not respond to Rolling Stone’s or Page Six’s requests for comment.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
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