Arcade Fire’s Win Butler Accused of Sexual Assault by Four People

Vin Butler, who performs with his wife Regine Chassan on Arcade Fire, has been accused of sexual harassment by four people.

In a report published Saturday (August 27) by Pitchfork, three Arcade Fire fans and a fourth person using their pronouns claimed they had sex with Butler when they were minors. on the 18th and 23rd, which they did not think was adequate; One of them claimed that the musician was sexually assaulting them. In a statement to the publication, Butler said the extramarital affair was consensual.

advertising panel A representative for Butler was contacted and said he had no further comment beyond the statement. fork.

The alleged incidents took place between 2015 and 2020. The alleged victims asked that pseudonyms be used for privacy purposes. fork They analyzed screenshots of text messages and Instagram and interviewed their friends and family who spoke up.

One person said that Butler sexually assaulted them twice in 2015 when they were 21-year-old art students and he was 34. Their relationship was considered only friendly and Butler remembered them as flirting. They said one incident occurred when they were in a car together where he allegedly put his hands down her pants without consent, and another occurred when he showed up at her apartment despite being told not to.

“I opened the door and he pushed me against the wall and grabbed my body aggressively and stuck his tongue down my throat,” they recalled. “He finally put me on his lap on my couch. I don’t know if he was holding my waist or what, but I was physically holding him as he reached inside my pants. At some point he tried to take me down… the anger and strength in my voice surprised me. I will never forget. “

Butler denied any non-consensual behavior, noting that “the atmosphere was strange, so I stopped and asked if [they were] It looked like maybe things were moving too fast. [They] He never asked me out and he never scolded me. [them]. I expressed genuine confusion about how the mood had changed so suddenly and become awkward. I said nothing much. I stopped and left.”

The second woman met Butler in 2016 when she was an 18-year-old student and he was 36. She participated in POP vs. Jock, hosted by Butler, shared photos from the event and tagged. Instagram. Butler sent her a direct message on Instagram and invited her for a drink at the bar she shared with her husband. The woman claimed that after that encounter, Butler repeatedly sent her explicit texts and photos without her consent or reciprocity; She said he said he was uncomfortable and texted her: “Sorry, I really hate sexting.” Butler, for her part, claimed that “we met for a drink and he was quite drunk and kept asking if we could sleep together somewhere”, but the woman denied making the advances.

butler pointed fork, “I didn’t understand the importance of the age difference at the time. Now I see what it was like to think at 18, but I didn’t appreciate it at the time.”

Two other women, who were 20 and 23 at the time of the alleged relationship with Butler, claimed that Butler contacted them on Instagram with casual conversation, asking them to upload sexually explicit videos and keep their messages private.

One of the women said she didn’t like doing “sexual things” in the video, but “I did it all because it was her”, recalling that “I remember being so nervous and embarrassed that I did it”. Her mother said of her period: “What really got to me was her depression. I could see her spiraling and more distraught than I had seen her in a long time, and I couldn’t put my finger on it.”

Butler disagreed: “I love our fans, but it was an unhealthy crowd,” he said. “We started texting and talking a lot, but I got more and more uncomfortable when he started coming to all my DJ events and showing up at my restaurant multiple times.

Another woman contacted Butler on Instagram after she was front-row at an Arcade Fire concert in Montreal. They developed a sexual relationship, which she said left her feeling “incredibly humiliated” and said she attempted suicide. “Keeping it all a secret, constantly ignoring my needs to appease her, having no boundaries and ignoring the other woman’s guilt was very difficult,” she said.

Butler admitted the relationship: he said it was “consensual. We had sex and ended up sleeping together a few times. I first realized I had a tattoo of my band, which honestly felt a little weird”, and said that he later realized that in their relationship, “I was having a hard time mentally, which was really surprising and very sad for me. We got on the phone right away and while he said his depression was unrelated to me, I walked out of the conversation on the condition that I would never sleep with someone I knew very little about, this really surprised me.

Although I reiterated that it had nothing to do with me, I suffered from a mental illness, which I sympathize with.

The woman told Pitchfork about her depression: “I was absolutely attached to it.”

In May, Arcade Fire released their sixth studio album, wewhich peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The group’s three previous albums – 2010 neighborhoods2013 reflector and 2017 everything now – topped the Billboard 200 at number 1.

See statements by Butler and Shassan, published in full for the first time forklow.

Win Butler’s Statement:

I love Regine with all my heart. We’ve been together for twenty years, he’s my partner in music and in life, my soulmate and I’m happy and grateful to have him by my side. But sometimes it’s been hard to balance being the father, husband and bandmate that I want to be. Today I want to clarify my life, bad judgment and mistakes.

I had consensual affairs outside of my marriage.

There’s no easy way to say this, and the hardest thing I’ve ever done is share it with my son. Most of these relationships were short-lived, and as my wife knows, our marriages were less conventional than some in the past. I reached out to people in person, at concerts and through social media, and shared messages I’m not proud of. More importantly, each of these interactions was mutual and always between consenting adults. This is profoundly revisionist and, frankly, it is wrong for anyone to suggest otherwise.

I have never touched a woman against her will, and any implication is simply false. I categorically deny any suggestion that I forced myself on a woman or asked for sexual favors. It simply and unequivocally never happened.

While these relationships were consensual, I deeply regret anyone I offended with my behavior. Life is full of tremendous pain and mistakes, and I never want to be part of the cause of someone else’s pain.

There is much grieving against mental health issues and the specters of child abuse. I started drinking in my 30s because I was dealing with the worst depression of my life after our family had a miscarriage. None of this is excusing my behavior, but I want to contextualize and share what was happening in my life right now. I no longer knew myself or who I had become. Regine patiently waited for my suffering and tried to help me as much as possible. I know it must have been really hard for her to see the person she loved so much.

I work hard on myself, not out of fear or shame, but because I am a person who wants to get better despite my flaws and hurts. I’ve spent the last few years since covid arrived trying to save that part of my soul. I have invested a considerable amount of time and energy in therapy and healing, including attending AA. I now understand better how my public image can distort relationships, even if the situation is friendly and positive for me. I am so grateful to Regine, my family, my dear friends, and my therapist for helping me out of the abyss that I was sure would at times tear me apart. The bond I share with my bandmates and the incredibly deep connection I make in sharing music with the public has literally saved my life.

As I look to the future, I continue to learn from my mistakes and work hard to become a better person my son can be proud of. To all my friends, family, anyone I’ve offended and people who love my music who are shocked and disappointed by this report, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for the pain I’ve caused, I’m sorry I wasn’t more aware and considerate of the effect I have on people, I’m sorry, and while there’s no excuse, I will continue to look forward to it. and heal what can be healed and learn from past experience. I can do better and I will do better.

Regine Chassan’s statement:
Who is my soulmate, my songwriting partner, my husband, the father of my beautiful son. He’s been my partner in life and music for 20 years. And despite the love of our lives, I also saw him in tremendous pain. I supported him because I know he is a good person who cares about this world, our band, his fans, friends and our family. Which I’ve known since we were “famous” when we were regular college students. I know what’s in his heart, and I know he’s never, ever touched a woman without his consent, and I’m sure he never did. He got lost and found his way back. I love him and I love the life we ​​created together.

A version of this story first appeared on billboard.com