Back in December of 2014, Jake McElfresh – otherwise known as Front Porch Step – came under a slew of allegations of sexual assault against girls as young as 13 years-old. A number of the girls shared their stories online (NSFW material) publicly, but others chose to remain anonymous. A full list of girls can be found here. These girls said that McElfresh had sent them sexually explicit text messages, and that they had exchanged nude photos.
When more and more allegations and evidence was spread around the Internet, a Change.org petition was started to get FPS off of Warped Tour this summer. He dropped his tour dates, both his personal tour and the ones where he would have played Warped, and was dropped from his record label, Pure Noise Records.
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At Warped Nashville stop on July 1st, people were shocked to see FPS at the event, surrounded and escorted around by security, playing an unannounced set on the tour’s acoustic stage. Bands both at the event and those not playing Warped immediately posted their criticism of his appearance online, while Dan Campbell of The Wonder Years was so appalled that he canceled his acoustic set on the same stage FPS played on. People immediately turned to Kevin Lyman, Warped Tour’s founder, for answers. His reply, however, was troublesome: “If you were on the board of MusicCares, and a group of professionals such as therapists and counselors came to you, would you have considered it? I’d really like to know.” The answer should have been simple, Lyman: no.
It’s unfortunate that incidents like this, particularly in this scene, are anything but rare. Shortly after the FPS incident at Warped, the band Slaves was removed from the rest of the tour because their singer, Johnny Craig, sexually harassed a female merch salesperson that was working with the band.
When asked what his plan was to make Warped Tour a safer place for minors, Lyman stated: “Next year we're going to have no kids on this tour. It’s going to be really tough if you want to be on this tour and are 21 and under. Whether it's the artist, crew… anyone.” The issue with this solution, however, is that McElfresh is 23, and Craig is 29. How can you expect a 21+ ban on bands and crewmembers to keep kids safe, when the men that are sexually assaulting them are over 21? It’s nearly impossible to protect kids when you are continuing to allow predators on your stages.
Now, a new band is being accused of sexually harassing a teenage girl via sexually explicit messages and nude photographs just like McElfresh. Neck Deep, a pop punk band from Wales, was put on the spot yesterday as 17 year-old Nancy came forward with sexual assault allegations. In a Tumblr post, she explains how she first contacted Fil Thorpe-Evans, the bands bassist, via Tumblr and began talking to and snapchatting him. She states that he asked her for nudes and she obliged because she liked his band. Shortly after, the rest of the band, their photographer at the time, and their tour manager all added her on Snapchat and began to harass her for nudes. She goes on to explain how Lloyd was mainly the one of the band who would send her back images of himself, while their photographer and manager would always harass her with unsolicited images of themselves. When people began to harass her for proof, she posted pictures of her old phone with screenshots of things she was sent, including a nude picture from their photographer.
On August 23, the band posted an official statement on their Facebook page in regards to the allegations being made against them. In it, they write, “Whilst the full facts of the matter at hand are still unclear, our guitarist Lloyd Roberts has decided to step down from Neck Deep to focus on his family, as he does not feel comfortable having his reputation, or that of the band sullied further by these accusations.” They go on to explain that all of their tour dates will continue as scheduled as they promote their new album. What’s mostly disheartening about the post, however, is the comments.
In the comments below, people have started up the hashtag #DefendNeckDeep – a play on the scene’s mantra Defend Pop Punk, coined by New Jersey band Man Overboard. One girl writes, “I do not believe for a second that the allegations are true but if they are here is a thought: hands up if you have ever sent nude photographs as a teenager?....not saying that what he supposedly did is right but he definitely wouldn't be the only one and honestly his past mistakes shouldn't effect how successful he is today.” And they only get worse from there.
The main problem with allegations like this coming to light, especially when they’re exposed via the Internet, people will immediately jump to defend the musician they look up to. People continue to support FPS because the girls sent him pictures back and willingly spoke to him. People will defend Neck Deep because the allegations are from two years ago and now that they have a successful new album that just dropped, they’ll think she’s only doing it for attention.
What it comes down to is educating people about violence, especially violence toward women and young girls. Unfortunately, young concert-goers needs to be taught that being in a situation with a musician you look up to or admire does not mean that you are safe. Young men and people in bands need to be taught that if you see something, say something. If you know someone is going after someone because they’re young, stop them. Instances of sexual harassment and assault cannot continue to be swept under the rug.
Women should be able to go to festivals and to engage with musicians without fear of becoming prey. There’s no excuse for pedophilia, de facto or otherwise, and anyone who willingly engages with minors needs to be held accountable. If you can’t guarantee that shows will be a safe place for women, you shouldn’t be surprised when they stop buying tickets and supporting musicians. Teach boys and men that no means no, that sexual harassment will not be tolerated, and that they deserve to lose fans for willingly engaging with minors.
