Har Mar Superstar issues both denial and apology after being accused of sexual assault
[Note: This article contains descriptions of sexual assault.]
In a piece published today by Minnesota’s Star Tribune, and in a social media statement penned by multiple “survivors and allies,” musician Sean Tillman—best known for performing as Har Mar Superstar—has been accused of sexually inappropriate behavior and comments. The Tribune piece also outlines several incidents of alleged assault, including one in which Tillman followed a woman into a bathroom and forcibly kissed her, another in which he exposed himself and shoved his penis into a woman’s face, and a third in which he shoved his hands into a woman’s pants. The majority of the women alleging these incidents have remained anonymous at this time, but the social media statement makes it clear that “The assaults experienced by 7 survivors that have shared thus far have ranged from pointed inappropriate sexual comments and grooming to physical sexual assault.”
Tillman has responded to the allegations, issuing a statement in which he denied the details of one specific incident—which, per the Tribune, took place in 2016 and sparked multiple other women coming forward—while issuing a blanket apology to the “brave women” who have been “coming forward to speak about how I treated them, including conduct that was harmful, abusive and selfish.” Although careful not to blame drugs and alcohol for his behavior, Tillman casts his struggles with substance abuse as a contributing factor to his behavior toward women in the period described. Outside the 2016 incident, which he says “just didn’t happen that way,” Tillman’s statement avoids directly addressing any of the other allegations against him.
The Minneapolis music community, where Tillman came up before achieving more global success, has already begun taking action in regards to the accusations against him. Per the Tribune, the city’s First Avenue nightclub has cut plans to sell tickets for an upcoming show by Tillman’s band Heart Bones, and local radio station 89.3 The Current has pulled his music from rotation.