Bay Area rock star known for positive music faces grooming allegations
Bay Area rock star known for positive music faces grooming allegations https://share.google/qx83vTZafgvUP0Jwj
Michael Franti, a Bay Area musician and former Stern Grove headliner, is “vehemently” denying engaging in nonconsensual behavior toward a younger female musician. A forthcoming music cruise in Mexico that Franti was set to headline has been canceled.
Franti did not name his accuser, but his message appears to be a response to statements made by Victoria Canal, a Spanish American singer-songwriter. Canal also did not name Franti but said last week on Instagram that she was groomed by an older musician she was touring with who touched her in nonconsensual ways and coerced her into not telling anyone else at the time.
Franti is an alternative rock star known for his positive songs like “Say Hey (I Love You)” that combine reggae, pop, soul and hip-hop influences. He was born in Oakland and attended the University of San Francisco. Michael Franti & Spearhead, his namesake band, headlined a Stern Grove show earlier this month. He celebrated the show by calling San Francisco his hometown in an Instagram post.
Franti defended himself in a Sunday Instagram post, saying that he was “deeply sorry” to his wife for violating their marriage and having a consensual romantic relationship with a younger musician seven years ago. He also acknowledged that there was a “power imbalance” in the relationship but denied that it was a nonconsensual relationship, saying he will “vehemently dispute any version of the story that says otherwise
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