Accountability in Music • Page 993

It’s giving huge youth pastor vibes. Gross.

 

I love how the parasocial fan thinks that Jason is the one who’s “in denial.”

 

Also last week I made a comment about how these shows are gonna filled with MAGA bros and someone responded by suggesting that was a reach.
Well, I’ve seen about a hundred comments in the past few days referring to BN protesters as “woke pussies” and some other derogatory comments about pronouns and homophobic slurs.

The irony here is that I think 10 years ago we delusionly put this band on a pedestal of being an inclusive and accepting community.

 

I've updated my piece to include some counter-arguments to the idiots and their dumb debates, at the very end section, for anyone who is interested

 

I think those are well worded and well thought oit additions that made me rethink even further the years of defending I've done. Thank you for continuing to expound on this and keeping conversations alive.

 

You tell ‘em! Also just to pile on, thank you for sharing your story and opening up. I’ve been trying to think of the right thing to say to express my feelings of gratitude, but from the bottom of my heart from someone who still struggles with navigating these same emotions involved with abuse, thank you.

 

I just want to add that although there are many people on message boards and across the internet that do send terrible messages to people…truly I choose to believe there is much more good than bad out there…its just that the bad are more abhorrent and thus a lot of times garner more attention and discussion

 

I was always disappointed with how full of bros Brand New shows were. It makes sense now.

 

Seeing them on tour after the original comeback was pretty enlightening with this. I never saw them live before then so I wasn't expecting it.

 

From personal experience, these people tend to be the ones whose favorite album is Your Favorite Weapon and never listened to anything past Devil, if even that. I know even RATM has Republican fans, but the disconnect between Brand New writing songs like "Archers" and "Desert" that are so explicitly anti-bigotry and the language used there is galling. It only furthers the need for them to say something to shut those fans down.

 

Despite being fully aware of the vile backlash that would inevitably follow putting your story out into the world, you're somehow continuing to write the most even-keeled, articulate, and easily digestible rebuttals to what's coming at you during what I can only imagine has been the most emotionally taxing weekend of your life. Whether it's responding directly to questions/comments here or adding addendums to your blog post, everything has been done with a supreme level of grace.

There must be a level of unease not knowing what comes next, but I hope some emotional catharsis has already been achieved these past couple of days. You're speaking truth to power, and are more of a rock star than the frontman currently going on tour this summer.

 

Thank you so much ♡ I've needed a lot of this kind of affirmation this weekend, it means more than you know.

There’s an underlying expectation that in order to be taken seriously about a topic as serious as child grooming and sexual abuse - especially as a woman - I must be composed, articulate, and measured. It feels like my truth is only valid if I can present it in a perfectly logical, calm, and structured way. Any emotion, vulnerability, or rawness is often dismissed as irrational or exaggerated, which obviously just contributes to the continued silencing of our voices. The pressure to conform to this standard is overwhelming, but it’s something women, especially in difficult or contentious situations, are often forced to navigate. It’s exhausting to constantly feel like my credibility is on trial, and that no matter how carefully I craft my words, they’ll still be torn apart in ways that disregard my experience.

But I do believe that offering grace to others is essential, as it allows for growth, understanding, and the possibility of change. Without grace, there can be no room for healing or reconciliation, and we risk perpetuating cycles of harm rather than breaking them. And yes - I'm a bit freaked out about what comes next, but trying to remember that I will be okay no matter what.

I will keep fighting for my story to be heard in the way it deserves to be.

 

It helps to have gone to a college where we didn't have tests to pass a class, we had to write 6-8 longggg essays (typically research papers) instead. I also have a degree in psychology. All these things help a LOT.

 

Being able to write papers instead of taking tests is why I majored in history

 

Yeah. It’s disappointing that you have to be perfectly composed and well-spoken and hyper-deliberate with how you present information in the *hope* that people will listen and not dismiss you as crazy/opportunistic. You shouldn’t have to be perfect to be taken seriously or viewed as honest/worth listening to (and, as we see, perfect still isn’t enough as some people still won’t believe you and will still insult you).

 

I imagine their current plan/tactic would have to fail for them to seek another tactic that could possibly resemble actual accountability. They don’t seem to have acted pro-actively up to this point.

 

If you had asked me on Friday I would’ve probably said they’ll try to ignore this. But the fact that so many news publications have picked it up and it’s causing such a discourse, I feel like they’re going to have to eventually make a statement.

 

I hope they read your call for accountability and take those steps.

But if they were going to, they would have already.

Their subreddit has already moved on as if nothing happened this weekend. They can do the same, and it would further prove they never cared about any form of restorative justice.

 

How do you live with yourself, as a husband and a father, if you make that choice? I understand not wanting to get caught up in a legal battle but damn. Imagine touring the country knowing your stanbase is made up of only the most myopic, regressive, pathologically defensive and hateful group of people.

 

Since they haven’t said anything about the entire thing since 2017, I don’t see them changing now.

 

But they have done something. He issued an apology, albeit one that lacked real accountability, canceled a tour, and went underground. While I agree that a response now would be surprising, he did respond to the allegations before, right ahead of another tour, and at a time when I’d argue most people were still in his corner. He didn’t have to do that. That’s why I’m so curious to see what unfolds.

I’d be absolutely gobsmacked if the tour (or even some of the dates) got canceled. Not counting on it. But ignoring this news cycle, especially on the heels of a highly anticipated resurgence, would not only be, but look incredibly spineless, in my opinion. But I also really doubt he expected me to come forward, not even for a second. Just curious to see how they handle the optics of this, despite their arenas getting packed to the brim

 

I think it would take a venue or opener cancelling, something external that actually effects him. It's not like he has regular media accessibility to be berated about it. There's no actual pressure on him except his conscience without something like that imo

 

Sorry, that’s what I mean. Since that statement, there’s been nothing from them on it. I just don’t expect them to do the right thing now.

 

In your piece you mentioned you do not want the band to be canceled, so long as restorative justice transpires. I cannot help but wonder how many others in your position would share this sentiment. Unfortunately, I would not anticipate them to make any public statement because, quite frankly, we do not know how many others have been assaulted by Jesse, and I do not think a statement would be able to grasp the intricacies and magnitude of the untold total of harm he has caused.

Cynically, however, if there ever was a time to say something - now is the time. I don’t know how to say this without it coming across as disrespectful, but please understand this is not my intention. Through your incredible grace, you have given the band a theoretical off-ramp - wherein if they were to take you up on your offer now, it could salvage their image for fans and detractors alike. People could point to this moment as a reason to return to support the band knowing they finally did the right thing, not knowing their actual intention. The optimist in me, hopes, that if they do reach out to you as a result of this that it is completely earnest, and that it helps to bring you the peace that you deserve.

 

I don’t think they’ll say anything. They weren’t very media friendly for like the second half of their career. So I doubt they’d try the Jonathon Majors approach. And it seems like most of the music pubs who would’ve covered them before the allegations aren’t covering them now.

But a wider entertainment pub, like maybe Variety could be an option. (They’ve written some wild, borderline propaganda on folks like Rachel Zegler and Melissa Barrera. There was also that terrible Hollywood Reporter article by a label guy against Chappell Roan saying artists should have healthcare.) Since most of the readers are probably unfamiliar with the band, they could attempt to spin this in a way most sympathetic to Jesse. I could see an op-ed about from someone connected to them in the industry but not Jesse directly.

Or if Jesse released a statement, I could see him focusing on the “pain he went through” instead of his actions. And how the loss he’s experienced caused him to reflect and become a “better person.”

But my best guess is that they’ll do nothing.