Ke$ha nearly became a wife. Instead, she’s releasing her fifth studio album, Gag Order, on which she sings about her failed engagement to a secret lover. The “Tik Tok” hitmaker, 36, revealed she was once engaged during a recent chat with Rolling Stone, which was published on April 25. Although the identity of her former fiance remains under wraps, she told the publication that they’re still friends. Her track, “Too Far Gone”, is about the downfall of her secret engagement.
Ke$ha keeps her private life to herself, but it is known she was in a relationship with writer Brad Ashenfelter beginning in 2014. “He’s really, a really sweet human being,” the “We R Who We R” singer said during a June 2014 radio interview with Ryan Seacrest, per Us Weekly. “I’m very happy to have him in my life.” They attended a few industry events together over the years, and Ke$ha opened up about their romance again in 2019 when she revealed they had an open relationship.
“You know, I’ll call him and be like, ‘I had fun tonight, I met a sweet girl and we had a really good time,'” she explained in a 2019 interview with Attitude. “And he’ll say, ‘Cool babe, I love you.’ It’s so nice.” Ke$sha has been open about being attracted to all sexualities in the past. It’s unclear if the singer and Brad are still together or if the song is about him.
The “Die Young” singer, who burst onto the music scene in 2008 with her hit song that encouraged people to brush their teeth “with a bottle of Jack”, said her upcoming album is her most vulnerable. “I feel like I’m giving birth to the most intimate thing I’ve ever created,” she told Rolling Stone. “I really dug into some of my uglier emotions and sides of myself that are less fun. It’s scary being vulnerable. The fact that I have compiled an entire record of these emotions, of anger, of insecurity, of anxiety, of grief, of pain, of regret, all of that is so nerve-racking — but it’s also so healing.”
The publication says Gag Order, which is due out on May 19, is a far cry from the music people may expect from Ke$ha’s original party girl persona who had an “I don’t care” attitude and included a dancing phallus in her 2011 Get $leazy Tour. It also lightly touches on her ongoing litigation involving her former producer Dr. Luke, who she accused of years of sexual, physical, and mental abuse. She filed a lawsuit in 2014, but it got dismissed in 2016. However, Dr. Luke has a defamation suit against her, which is expected to go to trial this summer. The song is called “Fine Line”.
“I feel as if there has been an implied gag order for a very long time now,” Ke$ha said while addressing her legal issues and the song. “With my ongoing litigation hanging over my head, I have not been able to speak freely because I know everything I say is scrutinized.”
Gag Order is the follow-up to her 2020’s album, High Road.