As disgusting as the sexual abuse allegations against frontman Till Lindemann are, given the colossal sums the controversial German band’s concerts bring in, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Rammstein returned to the Quebec stage.
This is what host Mike Gauthier suggests, recalling that Rammstein’s last performance in front of 44,000 people in Montreal at Parc Jean-Drapeau in August 2022 grossed $8 million.
“If people who decide whether to go to a concert or not are unscrupulous, they will say that they are making money because Rammstein attracts crowds,” believes the man who has been reporting on the music scene for 35 years.
The question promoters will ask themselves is: is the negative reaction that the announcement of a Rammstein concert would generate worth 8 million?
“It’s going to be a moral issue. “Anyone who books Rammstein has to expect reactions on social media and questions from journalists,” says Mike Gauthier.
Even after #MeToo
According to the latter, it is the serious allegations of sex crimes that come as a surprise in the Rammstein case. According to the German media, singer Till Lindemann is said to have drugged and sexually abused selected young viewers.
“I’m surprised they continued to do this after #MeToo,” he says, lamenting the continued dissatisfaction with these actions.
However, it is part of rock ‘n’ roll folklore that beautiful girls are invited backstage to party with artists.
“I remember touring guys from rock bands running around in the crowd backstage with passes. They spotted the pretty girls who would please the members of the group. We don’t know what happened after that, whether the artists took advantage of it,” says Mike Gauthier.
Le Journal revealed this week that Rammstein’s entourage asked the Festival d’été de Québec to find girls for him during his 2010 visit to the Plains of Abraham. The FEQ organization declined, but a party took place anyway.
Call for a boycott in Switzerland
In addition, women’s protection groups and politicians are mobilizing to force the cancellation of Rammstein concerts in Switzerland.
“These allegations of sexual assault must be taken seriously! The only responsible thing in this context is to cancel the concerts,” said Thomas Bruchez, vice president of Socialist Youth Switzerland at the Keystone-ATS agency.
Amid the excitement, Rammstein kicked off a summer stadium tour of Europe in Munich on Wednesday, while denying the allegations against his 60-year-old singer.
“These allegations are all false,” assure Till Lindemann’s lawyers.
“We will immediately take legal action against all such allegations,” they threaten.
– With AFP