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Brand New’s Jesse Lacey Responds to Sexual Misconduct Allegations

El cantante se disculpó por su comportamiento en el pasado, pero no abordó específicamente la acusación en su contra por haber solicitado desnudos a una menor hace 15 años.
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Jesse Lacey, the lead singer of Long Island rock band Brand New, has responded to allegations of sexual misconduct that circulated online Friday. In a statement posted to Facebook, the 39-year-old wrote that he was “absolutely sorry” for being “selfish, narcissistic, and insensitive” in his past.

The allegation of sexual misconduct was made in a public Facebook thread on Friday after Brian K Diaz, a guitar tech who had toured with Brand New, raised the issue of Lacey’s behaviour and invited others to comment. In response, one woman, Nicole Elizabeth Garey, wrote that Lacey had solicited nudes from her 15 years ago—when she was 15 and Lacey 24. She also wrote that Lacey had masturbated in front of her on Skype and had been emotionally manipulative towards her online for years afterwards. “It fucked me up to the point that I STILL have nightmares and wake up in a sweat,” she wrote. “I still breakdown and have panic attacks when people play Brand New in a bar. JESSE LACEY IS A PIECE OF SH*T”

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Less than 24 hours later, the indie rock band Martha announced that they would not go ahead with a forthcoming run of UK tour dates in support of Brand New. “We have decided to pull out of the brand new shows. Support survivors always,” the band wrote in a tweet.

Lacey’s response to the allegations was issued through the band’s Facebook page late last night. He does not refer directly to the allegations made by Garey. You can read his statement in full below.

An hour later, Kevin Devine, who has played with Brand New extensively and was also set to play some UK dates on this tour, responded with a Facebook post of his own. “I hope that my friend continues to do what he needs to do to get & be better," he wrote. "I completely understand it is not incumbent upon anyone else to see situations like this through that lens, and I mean to inflict no harm in presenting my experience. I’m not sure what happens next. When I am, I’ll say more.”

Noisey has reached out to representatives for Brand New for further information. This piece will be updated if there is anything further.

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