Feist leaves Arcade Fire trip after sexual misconduct claims against frontman.

 Canadian singer-songwriter announced she will be stepping back from the trip with Arcade Fire attending allegations against Win Butler.

The Canadian singer-songwriter Leslie Feist, known anonymously as Feist, has declared openly she will leave a tour with Arcade Fire following allegations of sexual misconduct against the band’s frontman, Win Butler.

Feist leaves Arcade Fire tour after sexual misconduct claims against frontman. 

 A Pitchfork investigation published last week alleged that the 42- year-old songster- guitarist of the Canadian indie rock band took advantage of age gaps and audience with four people; three women, aged 18 to 23 at the time, alleged Butler transferred unwanted sexual dispatches between the times 2015 and 2020. 

 A fourth, gender-fluid, person alleged that Butler sexually assaulted them doubly in 2015 when they were 21 and he was 34. Pitchfork viewed screenshots of text and Instagram messages between Butler and the four pseudonymous subjects, and interviewed friends and family members who recalled being told of the alleged incidents. 

 Butler denied the claims and said the relationships were consensual, adding in a statement “ It's deeply revisionist, and frankly just wrong, for anyone to suggest otherwise. ” 

 “ At a pub in Dublin, after rehearsing with my band, I read the same headline you did, ” Feist wrote in a lengthy statement posted to her social media accounts. “ We didn’t have any time to prepare for what was coming let alone a chance to decide not to fly across the ocean into the belly of this situation. ” 

Catching up with the allegations against ⁦@arcadefire⁩’s Win Butler courtesy of ⁦@FeistMusic⁩’s principled action & statement. But oh how very music industry & typical of the wider #MeToo movement that a woman’s livelihood is the 1st casualty https://t.co/iHHkWf3PoX

— Catherine Mayer (@catherine_mayer) September 2, 2022

 “ This has been incredibly difficult for me and I can only imagine how much more difficult it’s been for the people who came forward. More than anything I wish healing to those involved. ” 

 

 She added that the Pitchfork composition “ burned a discussion that's bigger than me, it’s bigger than my songs and it’s certainly bigger than any rock and roll tour To stay on tour would symbolize I was either defending or ignoring the harm caused by Win Butler and to leave would imply I was the judge and jury. ” 

The 46- year-old singer said she “ was noway here to stand for or with Arcade Fire – I was here to stand on my own two feet on a stage, a place I’ve grown to feel I belong and I’ve earned as my own. 

 

 “ There isn’t a singular path to heal when you ’ve endured any version of the above, nor a singular path to rehabilitating the perpetrators, ” she said. “ It can be a lonely road to make sense of ill-treatment. I can’t break that by quitting, and I can’t solve it by staying. But I can’t continue. ” 

 Following the allegations, radio stations in Canada and the US started pulling the band’s songs from playlists. Commentators on social media urged fans to boycott forthcoming concerts in Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and away, with many surprised the tour was going ahead at all. Asked for comment by a Guardian journalist at the band’s musicale in Dublin this week, a publicist for Arcade Fire said only that the band would continue its stint to promote their new album, We. 

 In her statement, Feist distanced herself from public shaming, which “ might cause action, but those conduct are made from fear, and fear isn't the place we find our best selves or make our best decisions. Fear doesn’t precipitate empathy nor mending nor opens a safe space for these kinds of conversations to evolve, or for real accountability and remorse to be offered to the people who were harmed. ” 

 In a statement to Pitchfork, Butler, who's married to bandmate Régine Chassagne, conceded having had sexual interactions with each of the four people but said they weren't initiated by him and were consensual. 

 In a further statement, he apologized “ to anyone who I've hurt with my behavior”, adding “ I'm continuing to learn from my mistakes and working hard to become a better person, someone my son can be proud of(.) I’m sorry I wasn’t more aware and tuned in to the effect I've on people – I fucked up, and while not an excuse, I'll continue to look forward and heal what can be healed, and learn from past experiences. ” 

 Noting that she’s “ imperfect ” and will “ navigate this decision imperfectly ”, Feist concluded that “ the stylish way to take care of my band and crew and my family is to distance myself from this tour, not this conversation. The last two nights on stage, my songs made this decision for me. Hearing them through this lens was incongruous with what I’ve worked to clarify for me throughout my whole career. 

“ I’ve always written songs to name my subtle difficulties, aspire to my best self, and claim responsibility when I need to. And I’m claiming my responsibility now and going home. ” 

Source : The Guardian