Radio Stations Refuse To Play Arcade Fire After Sexual Misconduct Accusations Against Win Butler

Several radio stations in Canada have announced they will be ceasing to play Arcade Fire at least for now, after their frontman Win Butler was accused of sexual misconduct by four people this past weekend.

> SARAH NEUFELD ON HOW ARCADE FIRE FORMED

Stations in the indie rock genre in places like Toronto and the U.S. have also removed the band from circulation.

Butler and his wife Régine Chassagne are the core pair of the hit band, which most recently released the album We in the spring of this year.

Allegations of misconduct were first reported by music publication Pitchfork, which collected stories of three women and one gender-fluid person who told of inappropriate behavior by Butler between 2015 and 2020.

The three women said they had sexual encounters with Butler when they were between the ages of 18 and 23, and he would’ve been in his early thirties. They told Pitchfork that the interactions now feel inappropriate given how they were devoted fans with a significant age gap from Butler.

Butler’s fourth accuser accused him of assaulting them twice in 2015. They said Butler stuck his hands into their pants while driving home from a date. The second assault reportedly occurred after Butler showed up at their apartment despite the accuser asking him not to come. The accusers also had messages proving contact with the singer and spoke about the incidents with friends and family.

In a statement to Pitchfork through a publicist, Butler admitted to having sexual relationships with all the accusers but denied that they were non-consensual.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t aware and tuned in to the effect I have on people – I f–ked up and while not an excuse, I will continue to look forward and heal what can be healed,” Butler said in part.

Arcade Fire is currently touring in Europe, and it seems like they hope to ride out the controversy after providing this initial response. It remains to be seen if anything more will come from these allegations besides a little bit of time-out on the radio.