Leslie Feist, leader of the eponymous musical outfit Feist, said on Thursday that she will no longer serve as the opening act for Arcade Fire’s tour. The decision was made after Pitchfork reported sexual misconduct charges against Win Butler, one of the band’s co-founders.
In a statement published on her website and Instagram, Feist said she learned about the allegations from the news, and after performing the first two nights of the scheduled tour, she concluded that “the best way to care for my band, crew, and family is to distance myself from this tour, not this conversation.”
“My music made this choice for me. Hearing them via this prism was inconsistent with what I’ve spent my whole career attempting to explain for myself “the assertion asserts.
Feist relates to her own experiences in her essay “My experiences mirror those of the several folks I’ve talked with since the news broke on Saturday…
Everyone has a narrative along a range ranging from toxic masculinity as a baseline to widespread sexism to real physical, psychological, emotional, or sexual assault.”
The claims against Butler were published for the first time in Pitchfork on Tuesday, including the experiences of four individuals who experienced anything from unsolicited sexting to sexual assault. All were younger than Butler, ranging in age from 18 to 23 although he was in his mid to late 30s at the time.
In a statement sent to Pitchfork, Butler confesses having extramarital sexual relationships but says they were consensual.
Butler added in his statement, “I have never touched a woman without her consent, and any suggestion to the contrary is completely incorrect.”
“Although these relationships were all consensual, I apologize to everyone I have harmed with my actions,” he wrote, adding, “As I look to the future, I will continue to learn from my errors and strive to become a better person, someone my kid can be proud of.”
According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the American-Canadian Butler’s music has been dropped from numerous North American radio stations after the charges became public.
“Due to recent accusations against Win Butler, CBC Songs will halt playing Arcade Fire’s music until further notice,” stated Chuck Thompson, director of public relations at CBC.
As of Thursday, Arcade Fire will continue their European tour as planned.
Help is available if you or a loved one has suffered sexual misconduct; contact RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4677 for confidential assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.