2023 was full of musical highlights, but was by no means scandal-free. These were the biggest upsets of the music year.
Of course, the job of music stars is no longer just about composing rousing songs and bringing them to the stage in spectacular shows. Whether voluntarily or not, they also have the task of providing the public with gossip about themselves. Unfortunately, this gossip isn’t always just about love stories and glamorous red carpet appearances, but also about the darker sides of being a superstar. This year too, a number of abysses opened up in this regard.
Rammstein singer Till Lindemann under constant fire
In Germany, the mega-scandal involving Rammstein singer Till Lindemann (60) dominated the headlines for months. This began when Irish woman Shelby Lynn (24) claimed after an after-show party in Vilnius on May 25 that she woke up with bruises and couldn’t remember anything that happened.
As a result, more and more women spoke out about what happened to them. There have also been repeated reports of a suspected groupie system in which young female fans are said to have been acquired for the singer’s private backstage parties in the run-up to concerts. Throughout the course of the scandal, the singer never once commented personally on the allegations, but instead had his lawyers dismiss them as “untrue without exception.”
At a concert in Munich that was accompanied by protests, he confidently made it clear that Rammstein would survive the turbulence unscathed. There he announced after the show finale: “Munich, we were extremely lucky with the storm that was announced. Believe me, the other one will pass too.”
At the end of the year it seems to be clear that Lindemann was actually right with his prophecy. The smoke surrounding the band has long since cleared in the media. On August 29, the Berlin public prosecutor’s office also closed the investigation against Lindemann due to a lack of sufficient suspicion.
Bullying allegations against body positivity icon Lizzo
At this point, Lindemann’s American colleague Lizzo (35) had already taken over the production of scandalous headlines. On August 1, three dancers who were part of her previous tour filed a lawsuit. In this they accused the US singer and icon of the body positivity movement of, among other things, bullying, sexual harassment and the creation of a “toxic work environment”.
Among other things, Lizzo’s visit with team members to the Amsterdam red light district was cited as an act of sexual harassment. In a strip club, one of the plaintiffs was forced to touch the breasts of a naked dancer against her stated will. In order to get her to do so, the singer started a chant until the plaintiff finally gave in.
Like, among other things the Los Angeles Times reported, Lizzo is also said to have criticized one of the dancers for gaining weight and accused her of a lack of commitment in this regard. She also tortured the dance team with 12-hour non-stop rehearsals to test the “commitment” of her employees.
The dancers’ attorney commented on the situation: “The astonishing way Lizzo and her management team have treated her dancers seems to contradict everything Lizzo stands for publicly, while privately she shames her dancers about their weight and humiliating them in a way that is not only illegal but absolutely demoralizing.”
The artist herself rejected the “sensationalist” claims in an Instagram post immediately dismissed it and described it as “unbelievable” and “outrageous”. Her final statement: “With passion comes hard work and high standards. Sometimes I have to make tough decisions, but it is never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable or that they are not valued as an important part of the team .”
Sean “Puff Dady” Combs is catching up with the past
A little less surprisingly than with the queer icon Lizzo, from November 2023 there was an alleged sexual scandal involving the gangster rapper and producer Sean Combs (54), also known under pseudonyms such as “Puff Daddy” or “P. Diddy”. Abuse. In his case, however, the allegations against him were much more serious than in her case.
The scandal began with a civil lawsuit filed by singer Cassie Ventura (37) against the powerful hip-hop mogul, with whom she was in a relationship between 2007 and 2018. In a 35-page lawsuit filed in mid-November, from which CNN, among others, quotedshe accused Combs of sexual abuse, rape, intimidation and physical violence.
Their relationship came about after the rapper lured her into a “flashy, fast-paced and drug-fueled lifestyle and into a romantic relationship with him.” Only then did he sign her to his record label “Bad Boy Records”. However, there was no trial in the case. Following an intervention by the music mogul, an “out-of-court settlement” between the two occurred just hours after the lawsuit was filed.
However, three more women later filed lawsuits against Sean Combs, all of whom accused him of sexually abusing or raping them while under the influence of drugs in the early 1990s. On December 6, the day the fourth lawsuit was filed, the defendant posted an angry statement on Instagram in addition. In it he wrote: “ENOUGH is ENOUGH. Over the last few weeks I have watched in silence as people have attempted to destroy my character, destroy my reputation and my legacy. Disgusting accusations have been made against me by people who are quick to Payday was over. Let me be clear: I did none of the terrible things I’m accused of.”
Despite his vehement protestations of innocence, the wave of lawsuits brought Combs his first harsh consequences. According to one Report from Variety magazine On December 13, Hulu canceled a reality series about the musician’s family in light of the widening scandal. He had previously resigned from his position as chairman of the hip-hop television channel “Revolt”.