Lukasz “Dr. Luke”
Gottwald
Songwriter/producer; owner, Kemosabe Records; owner, Prescription Songs
Expanding his empire beyond the top of the Billboard Hot 100 to publishing and TV (and bottled water, if you’re thirsty)
It might be easier to list the sectors of the music industry that Dr. Luke doesn’t touch than the ones he does. An in-demand songwriter/producer (Katy Perry’s “Roar,” Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” and Pitbull’s “Timber” featuring Ke$ha are his three latest Hot 100 chart-toppers), he’s also a label owner (Kemosabe Records, a joint venture with Sony Music), a publishing executive (Prescription Songs, which inked deals with Big Machine and Mad Decent last April) and a TV producer (MTV’s Ke$ha docu-series “My Crazy Beautiful Life,” renewed for a second season).
Even for the songs he doesn’t have a direct hand in, Luke’s presence is felt through the Kemosabe/Prescription family — whether it’s singer/songwriter Bonnie McKee (co-writer of “Roar” ), Benny Blanco (OneRepublic’s “If I Lose Myself”) and Cirkut (who co-produced and co-wrote on Perry’s “PRISM” with Luke).
Beyond music, Luke has investments in bottled water (Core Natural), a private business conference (Summit Series) and real estate: Under the guidance of Sony boss Doug Morris, he’s purchased four buildings in Los Angeles on Hollywood Boulevard, including the iconic Kress Building, for studio spaces and offices. “Last year I did a lot of moving around. It’ll be exciting to be more in one place,” Dr. Luke says.