Singer-songwriter Larkin Grimm wrote a lengthy and emotional Facebook post Thursday, in which she discusses her personal and professional relationship with Swans frontman Michael Gira, accusing him of rape. In her post, Grimm writes:
Many people have assumed, over the years, that Michael and I had a love affair, and in a way, for a time, maybe we did. But I never consented to having sex with him. I wouldn’t have wanted to ruin such an important opportunity that way. Technically, he raped me. It took me a long time to admit that to myself. Years. Michael Gira, my producer, raped me and dumped me from his label when I confronted him about it, needing to feel safe. What happened was awful, but as a prison abolitionist, an anarchist, and a nice person I didn’t want to destroy his whole life with a rape charge. Looking back, he didn’t think twice about destroying mine. Sending my love to #Kesha I know how you feel. At least I got out of my record deal, though I was never offered another one after that.
Gira, who Grimm says dropped her from his label after she confronted him, responded quickly, calling Grimm’s story “a slanderous lie.” Gira’s wife Jennifer also posted about the accusations, stating that the rape simply “did not happen.” Gira later issued a statement through his publicist, admitting to the encounter, but called it a “consensual romantic moment,” “awkward mistake” and “ill-advised tryst.” But Grimm has addressed those comments in another post that you can read in full on Pitchfork: “This was still rape.”