Tool singer Maynard James Keenan spoke out about a rape accusation made against him on social media, calling the accusation “despicable” and “false.”
In a Twitter post Thursday, Keenan said that the accusation “only does damage to the #metoo movement.”
“Many thanks to those of you who saw right through this despicable false claim that only does damage to the #metoo movement. And shame on those of you who perpetuate this destructive clickbait,” Keenan wrote.
“As for my delayed but un-required response, I had my phone off. You should try it,” Keenan concluded.
Last week, a Twitter user with the account name Iwas17HeWas36 made the accusation, saying that the vocalist raped her when she was 17. The accuser alleged that Keenan raped her in 2000, at a concert where Keenan’s side band, A Perfect Circle, was performing with Nine Inch Nails.
According to the Twitter account, the girl was asked if she wanted to meet the band and went backstage to a VIP area, where Keenan invited her to watch “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” on the bus.
“He started rubbing my neck. At this point, I fell silent. He talked about the film, Johnny Depp, and Hunter S. Thompson while he started taking his pants off. All I could do was sit there, looking at the movie, unable to move,” the Twitter user wrote.
“I froze so he had to move my body into a missionary position. He pulled off my cargo pants. He forced himself in- there was no attempt at ‘warming up,’” the account continued. “I mention this because this wasn’t about sex. This was about raping me as fast as he could.”
Many thanks to those of you who saw right through this despicable false claim that only does damage to the #metoo movement. And shame on those of you who perpetuate this destructive clickbait. As for my delayed but un-required response, I had my phone off. You should try it.
— Maynard J Keenan (@mjkeenan) June 28, 2018