The former head in charge of organizing the Grammy Awards was Wednesday sued by a musician who accused him of drugging and raping her in 2018.
The New York Times, was the first to report the story then, says the state suit filed in Manhattan accused Neil Portnow — who had since stepped down as head of the Recording Academy in 2019 over his denigrate comments toward women, It also accuses the Academy of negligence.
In a statement to AFP, the Recording Academy vowed to “vigorously defend the Academy in this lawsuit.”
“We continue to believe the claims to be without merit,” it said.
The suit does not name the woman to maintain her privacy.
A representative for Portnow did not immediately reply to AFP, but in the Times story, he flatly denied the allegations.
The suit brought criticism of both Portnow and the Academy that led to the powerful executive leaving in 2019 after 17 years, following his controversial comments that women should “step up” to gain more recognition for their work in an industry dominated by white men.
The new court documents, according to the Times, say the female artist met Portnow at a Grammy-related event in New York, which hosted the awards in 2018.
She alleged that he invited her to his hotel room and offered her wine, which she drank before she began “to feel woozy.” Portnow did not drink from the wine suit says.
The woman said she wanted to leave but Portnow said there were no taxis.
