Hit producer The-Dream has filed a motion to dismiss the sexual assault lawsuit filed against him in June, claiming that the plaintiff and her attorney are “using the judicial system to propagate a false and defamatory narrative” about him.
The producer, whose real name is Terius Gesteelde-Diamant, is one of the music industry’s most prolific hitmakers, penning tracks with Beyonce, Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Mariah Carey, Jay-Z and Kanye West among others. Gesteelde-Diamant claimed in the motion that he and plaintiff Chanaaz Mangroe had a “brief and consensual courtship,” further stating that he never abused her.
“Diamant categorically denies Plaintiff’s allegations in the Complaint,” the motion said. “They are simply disconnected from reality, and the Complaint fails in its entirety.”
Gesteelde-Diamant’s motion comes over two months after Mangroe first sued him, alleging that he’d used his status in the industry to “lure the young and vulnerable artist into an abusive, violent, and manipulative relationship filled with physical assaults, violent sexual encounters, and horrific psychological manipulation.”
Mangroe alleged that she first met Gesteelde-Diamant in late 2014 after a childhood friend of hers had reached out to her and claimed that by 2015 she met the producer in Atlanta. She alleged that during their time together, Gesteelde-Diamant forced her to drink excessive amounts of alcohol, choked her multiple times and recorded sexual acts with her and used the recordings to “threaten Ms. Mangroe into silence.”
“Choosing to speak out about the trauma I survived has been one of the most difficult decisions of my life, but ultimately, what Dream did to me made it impossible to live the life I envisioned for myself and pursue my goals as a singer and songwriter,” Mangroe said in a statement at the time. “Ultimately, my silence has become too painful, and I realized that I need to tell my story to heal. I hope that doing so will also help others and prevent future horrific abuse.”
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Gesteelde-Diamant alleged that it was actually Mangroe who initially reached out to his friend, and that she said she’d pay the friend a “finder’s fee” for making the connection with him. Gesteelde-Diamant further claimed that Mangroe made the first move on him, with the two having a short relationship before he decided to end it.
He alleged that Mangroe continued to pursue him after their relationship ended, sharing screenshots in the motion that included sexually suggestive text messages she’d allegedly sent in June of 2016, further telling him “yesterday u had me in my feels and today my imagination is running wild.”
The dismissal motion had included several other screenshots, including one from last year in which Mangroe allegedly texted Gesteelde-Diamant childhood friend telling him she’d “always be grateful for the moments I got to spend in the studio with you guys!”
Gesteelde-Diamant’s motion to dismiss calls the original complaint a “shotgun pleading” that the motion said is designed to “overwhelm defendants with an unclear mass of allegations and make it difficult or impossible for defendants to make informed responses to the plaintiff’s allegations.” The motion also refers to the suit as “nothing more than a legally insufficient hit piece.”
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“The Complaint weaponizes destructive racial stereotypes against Diamant that he and others have faced — and tried to overcome — their entire lives,” the motion said.
When asked for comment on the motion, Mangroe’s attorney Doug Wigdor — who’s represented plaintiffs in suits against other entertainment fixtures including Sean Combs and James Dolan — said in a statement that “the Dream’s arguments seeking to dismiss Plaintiff’s allegations are wholly unpersuasive. We look forward to opposing the motions and proceeding to discovery in this case,” Widgor said.
