Antonio L.A. Reid, co-founder of LaFace Records and former head of Arista, Epic, and Def Jam Records, faces allegations of sexual assault and harassment in a lawsuit filed by former Arista executive Drew Dixon.
The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan’s Federal District Court, alleges that Reid assaulted Dixon twice during her tenure at Arista in the early 2000s. Following her rejection of his advances, Dixon claims that Reid retaliated against her professionally, resulting in missed opportunities with artists like John Legend. She ultimately left the company in 2002.
Dixon had previously accused Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons of rape in 2017, a claim he has denied. While Simmons is not named as a defendant in her lawsuit against Reid, she is still considering her legal options regarding Simmons.
Dixon, in an interview with the New York Times, stated, “I have an opportunity now to seek some degree of accountability, and that’s really what I’m trying to do.”
Representatives for Reid, who recently launched the Mega imprint through the new Gamma company, have not responded to requests for comment. He stepped down as chairman of Epic Records in 2017 after allegations of sexual harassment were reported by Variety.
Dixon’s complaint falls under the Adult Survivors Act, a New York law enacted last year that provides a one-year window for civil lawsuits from individuals who were over 18 when they experienced abuse. This window is set to close on November 24.
While at Arista, Dixon worked extensively with artists such as Whitney Houston and Carlos Santana. Her lawsuit details several instances of Reid’s “sexualizing and harassing” behavior, which she claims began when he assumed a leadership role in the company in 2000. She asserts that, after rebuffing his advances, Reid retaliated by undermining her professionally, including reducing budgets and rejecting song demos and artist auditions.
Dixon explained, “It was very clear that I was being punished because I would not comply.” In 2002, she left Arista to attend Harvard Business School, and her attempts to re-enter the music industry were allegedly hindered by encounters with Reid and his associates, ultimately leading to her withdrawal.
