Thread by @kellyblaus

When we frame abuse in the music industry as some kind of dirty little secret instead of a known, ongoing problem that people actively choose to disregard, we are doing a serious disservice to victims and skirting overdue accountability of the many people who are complicit.

For decades, so many people knew exactly who Marilyn Manson was, and they did nothing. There were so many times when Manson proudly shared stories of the abuse he inflicted on others. In response, his label, managers, colleagues, and music executives chose to look the other way.

In 2009, Manson hired an Evan Rachel Wood lookalike and filmed a disturbing music video of him beating her. This was completely public. We watched. We did nothing.

That same year, Manson interviewed with Spin and shared horrific details about cutting himself 158 times in an effort to guilt Evan. He also said he has “fantasies every day about smashing her skull in with a sledgehammer.”
This interview was public. We read it. We did nothing.

Over two decades ago, Manson released an autobiography in which he detailed an incident of throwing a glass perfume bottle at his mother’s face. The injuries from the glass shards were so severe that she had to go to the hospital. The book was published in 1999. We did nothing.

In his 1999 autobiography, Manson shares the story of how he came within moments of murdering an ex. He stalked her repeatedly before coming to her home with kerosene and matches.
The book was a bestseller. Thousands and thousands of readers, reviewers and publishers did nothing.

Manson’s autobiography also details the repeat stalking, harassment, and rape threats he and a friend used to punish a woman who rejected him.

This was in the same bestselling book from 1999.

22 years passed, and we did nothing.

Here’s a photo of his autobiography’s back cover. These are major publications who read those horrific things and chose to openly endorse the book instead of holding him accountable.

Rolling Stone, Newsweek, Us, Elle, and so many more.

They all read it. They did nothing.

There were so many opportunities to stop him from continuing his violence against more women.

There were so many people who could have intervened, who could have said no, who could have held him accountable for his actions.

There were so many record labels, music executives, and publishing houses who witnessed Manson’s abuse pattern. They knew who he was, but for whatever reason, they sat back and ignored the rape and torture of dozens of women.

There are so many people with blood on their hands.

This is not an isolated event. This happens every single day in the music industry. And it will continue to happen as long as we look the other way.

Victims should not be the only ones holding abusers accountable, especially when they’ve already been failed by so many people.

R. Kelly
6ix9ine
Chris Brown
Ryan Adams
Jesse Lacey
Front Porch Step
Xxxtentacion
Kodak Black

These are all musicians with a history of predation.

They also all have enablers who allow them to continue to thrive and have platforms.

I know this from firsthand experience. My abuser is a successful musician who preyed upon dozens of underage girls. He used his platform to sexually abuse children who looked up to him.

So many people knew. So few people cared.

https://twitter.com/kellyblaus/status/1302295824601427970

In my own case, I met so many people who could have helped me. So many people who should have put a stop to it.

I met my abuser’s band mates and tour managers several times each. I was obviously 16-17 years old. He was at least 30+.

My abuser bragged in interviews about lying to his fans (predominantly teenage girls) about his age.

My abuser publicly flirted with me online and in person, even Tweeting me regularly and calling me “babe” and hitting on me through his very public Twitter page.

My abuser openly groped me and publicly made out with me in the venue of one of his shows when I was very clearly underage. Hundreds of people witnessed this, including his band mates and music industry colleagues.

None of them did anything. They all just looked the other way.

My story is just another one of hundreds and hundreds like it.

There are plenty of stories just like Evan’s, too.

This is an ongoing issue in every industry, but it’s especially prevalent in the music industry where the power imbalance becomes that much more intense.

The truth is, we don’t have to dig much deeper to find these abusers.

So many of them have already been abusing right in front of us for years.

We just have to care enough to do something about it when we do witness it.