Content warning: This story mentions sexual assault.
“As soon as the news loaded, my heart dropped into my stomach,” said a female college sophomore earlier this week after learning that yet another public figure she looked up to had disappointed her. “I immediately looked online to see if it was true.”
The Sun U.K. reported on Monday, Oct. 10 that English singer Alexander O’Connor, better known to his fans as Rex Orange County, was accused of sexually assaulting a woman on six separate occasions. According to The Sun, 24-year-old O’Connor appeared at Southwark Crown Court in London on Monday to deny the allegations and was released on unconditional bail. A representative for the musician said, “Alex is shocked by the allegations which he denies and looks forward to clearing his name in court. He is unable to make any further comment because of the ongoing proceedings.”
O’Connor burst into the music mainstream under the name Rex Orange County when he was featured multiple times on Tyler the Creator’s 2017 Grammy-nominated album, Flower Boy. Since then, O’Connor has released two additional solo albums and headlined multiple tours across the world. O’Connor announced on Instagram in July 2022 that he had to cancel his fall 2022 tour dates in Australia, New Zealand and Europe due to “unforeseen personal circumstances.”
Now, three months later, his fans have reason to believe what these circumstances were.
A 20-year-old Rex Orange County fan drove ten hours from her hometown of Westfield, Massachusetts to attend his June 2022 concert in Pittsburgh. That experience was well worth it to her at the time, but after learning of these allegations and the singer’s true colors, she wishes she saved herself the time, money and effort.
Many find it heartbreaking to hear that someone who created great work, or whose work meant something, could be accused of such a thing. An attendee of Rex Orange County’s February 2020 concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City was “elated” to tell his friends about the concert, up until all of the allegations came out. “I would always tell people how great of a performer he was, but after this, I’m not going to be able to listen to his music without thinking about what he’s done.”
We’ve seen celebrities deal with things like this before in the music industry. In February 2019, alternative singer/songwriter Ryan Adams’ upcoming album release and tour plans were altered when The New York Times published an article that reported allegations of sexual misconduct against the singer from seven women, including his ex-wife. As a result of the article, Adams’ album release scheduled for April 2019 was canceled and Ticketmaster canceled his upcoming U.K. and Ireland tours via Twitter. Adams did not again appear in public until May 2022 when he played a show at Carnegie Hall – a completely sold-out show.
So what does this mean for Alex O’Connor and his career? Will he be able to recoup his losses, or will he fall victim to modern cancel culture?
Only time will tell, as his provisional trial is currently set for January 3, 2023.
Note: Certain names have been omitted from the article at the request of the source due to vulnerable content.