Record producer and singer-songwriter The-Dream accused in new lawsuit of raping woman – LocalNews8.com

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — Record producer and singer-songwriter The-Dream (Terius Gesteelde-Diamant) is accused of sex trafficking, rape and sexual abuse in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by CNN, Gesteelde-Diamant used “his age and influence” in the music industry to “manipulate” plaintiff Chanaaz Mangroe, a singer-songwriter from the Netherlands who is in the U.S. on an O-1B “extraordinary ability” visa. The lawsuit alleges that he lured Mangroe “into an abusive, violent and manipulative relationship marked by physical assault, violent sexual encounters and horrific psychological manipulation.”

According to the lawsuit, Mangroe claims that Gesteelde-Diamant once raped her in a van “the same evening he forced her to perform sexual acts in a public movie theater.”

She has requested a jury trial and is demanding unspecified damages.

CNN has reached out to representatives for Gesteelde-Diamant for comment but has not received a response. In a statement his representative sent to The New York Times, Gesteelde-Diamant denied the allegations.

“These allegations are untrue and defamatory,” said the statement sent to the Times. “I oppose any form of harassment and have always tried to help people achieve their career goals. As someone who is committed to making a positive impact on my fellow artists and the world at large, I am deeply offended and saddened by these allegations.”

In a statement to CNN, Mangroe said she needed to tell her story to heal her wounds.

“Choosing to speak out about the trauma I survived was one of the hardest decisions of my life, but ultimately, what Dream did to me made it impossible to live the life I envisioned and pursue my goals as a singer and songwriter,” Mangroe said in the statement Tuesday. “Ultimately, my silence became too painful and I realized that I needed to tell my story in order to heal. I hope this helps others as well and prevents future horrific abuse.”

In her complaint, Mangroe describes her meeting with Gesteelde-Diamant in 2015, when the production team expressed interest in signing her as an artist.

Mangroe, who was 23 at the time, claims in the lawsuit that Gesteelde-Diamant promised to secure her record and publishing deals and write songs for her “like he did for Beyoncé and Rihanna.” Instead, the lawsuit alleges, he subjected her to “violent sexual acts and vicious psychological torture.”

The lawsuit alleges that he controlled “all aspects” of her life while she was in the U.S. on a work visa. Gesteelde-Diamant allegedly sexually abused Mangroe on multiple occasions, filmed her performing sex acts and forced her to drink “excessive amounts of alcohol” by pouring it down her throat.

“This is another horrific example of how men in the music industry use their power and influence to manipulate and harm others,” Mangroe’s attorneys Douglas H. Wigdor and Meredith A. Firetog said in a statement to CNN. “Although she will never fully recover from what he and his supporters did to her, her willingness to speak out now is a testament to her extraordinary strength.”

Wigdor and Firetog also represent Cassie Ventura, who sued Sean “Diddy” Combs for rape and abuse in 2023. The lawsuit was settled out of court a day after it was filed, and Combs denied the allegations. Combs later apologized on his Instagram page after CNN released surveillance footage from 2016 showing him physically assaulting Ventura.

Gesteelde-Diamant is a Grammy-winning artist known for his songs, including Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” and Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body.” He also wrote a number of songs for Beyoncé, including “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” and “Partition.” In 2012, he was named Executive Vice President of A&R at Def Jam Records, leaving the company in 2014 to start his own label, Contra Paris.

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