Lydia Night of the Regrettes released a statement Monday accusing SWMRS drummer Joey Armstrong, son of Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, of emotional abuse and sexual misconduct. Night wrote about the nature of her relationship with Joey Armstrong when she was 16 and 17 years old. Armstrong responded with a statement in response Tuesday.
In Night’s statement, he wrote that he long thought his relationship with Armstrong was “toxic and not valid enough to share, but now I know that what I really experienced was emotional abuse and sexual coercion by someone in a position of power over me. . “She detailed multiple instances where she felt pressured to have sexual encounters.” Every time we took a sexual step it was because he wanted to and made it clear by putting my hand on his crotch or embarrassing myself for saying I wasn’t comfortable, for turning me on. the gas or for ignoring me when I didn’t give my consent, “he wrote.
Night wrote that the “traumatic events” of her relationship with Armstrong continued to impact her years later. She claimed that in December 2019, she faced Armstrong. “Although he interrupted me during our conversation, he seemed to understand what I was saying and apologized,” he wrote. In the past few weeks, Armstrong sent him a handwritten apology.
On Sunday, SWMRS issued a statement of support for those who file complaints. Night called SWMRS for his “incredibly hypocritical statement” and said that after the band’s statement was released, he heard from Armstrong. “Joey texted me to follow up on the letter, which was a completely transparent attempt to feel what he was going to do knowing the sheer hypocrisy in his statement.”
Armstrong responded to Night publicly in a post shared on SWMRS’s Instagram account on Tuesday. “I want to address Lydia’s Instagram post about our relationship,” Armstrong wrote. “While I disagree with some of the things she said about me, it is important that she be allowed to say them and supported to speak. I respect her immensely and accept that I failed her as a partner. I was selfish and didn’t treat her the way she deserves to have been treated both during our relationship and in the two years since we broke up. I apologized to her privately and hope she can forgive me, if she is ready to do it and when she does. I own my mistakes and will work hard to regain the confidence I lost. “
Night’s statement came during a period when multiple people filed allegations of misconduct against multiple artists and individuals on the West Coast rock scene. In response to stories circulating on social media, Burger Records announced plans to undergo structural changes as a co-founder resigned. SWMRS tape edition of their 2016 album Drive north It was released by Burger.
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