Platform Wants to Expose Violence and Abuse of Power in Music Business

Two years ago, activists started to collect reports of sexual violence in the German rap music business. Since then, the «deutschrapmetoo» project has gathered a database of 70 artists accused in said reports—some of them multiple times.

The recent news and allegations against Rammstein and their frontman Till Lindemann sparked the project's expansion. Under the new name «Music MeToo», they now expand their work into all of Germany's music business.

After a review, they want to publish the testimonials anonymously on a new website and their Instagram channel.

Further down the road, they plan to offer education and information on discrimination and corresponding contact points. The activists also want to make other experiences—such as racist discrimination or transphobia—visible.

Fight Against Discriminating Structures

Behind the project is an alliance of «deutschrapmetoo», the awareness agency «Safe the Dance», the community «Queer Cheer», the networks «Music S Women*», «Music TH Women*» and other activists.

«It's not just one genre, not just one band, not just one industry. The grievances are overarching, and sexism and sexualised violence are present everywhere,» they write on their Instagram.

Furthermore, they highlight the structural issues around the topic:

«It is not only individual perpetrators or individual acts that constitute the problem. It is deeply rooted structures that run through every public and private sector of society that urgently need to be changed.»

In a report by German «Tagesschau», the project founders state that the protection of offenders is a big topic in the music business. Many people work for the artists at festivals and concerts—from management to stage builders. That's a lot of people who could witness potentially abusive behaviour. «What you can say in any case: These assaults can only happen because very, very many people look away, deliberately look away, again and again.»