Sargent House founder Kathy Pellow resigned from the label and management company after allegations against her surfaced online.
Henry Kohen of the Mylets group released a video and a long statement detailing the accusations, as well as the events that occurred during his stay in the house where the employees lived.
Kohen said that in 2015 he was molested by “the owner of the establishment and a regular at Sargent House,” and when he told Pellow about the incident, he was ignored. “They didn’t take me seriously, they greeted me, in fact, with a shrug and an awkward laugh,” he said, “and a few nights later I came to the house and found that he had returned as a guest for dinner. Their professional and personal relationship remained unchanged for a long time after I told Katie about it.”
Elsewhere in the statement, Kohen said: “In October 2013, when I was just 17 years old, at a concert in Chicago during my very first North American tour, Katie took me aside and told me with the utmost seriousness never to forget that the only reason someone ever he paid attention or appreciated my music, it was because of her.”
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He continued: “I have witnessed routine extreme degradation and verbal insults of employees and artists, deliberate belittling and manipulation leading to rivalry and insecurity among artists, blatant and even misogynistic expressions related to the “acquisition” of emotionally vulnerable female artists, purposeful concealment of financial information, except for vague hints about how much artists she obligation, open contempt for the fan bases of groups, violent and purposeful violation of the personal boundaries of artists and employees, as well as a comprehensive process of “alienation”, which inspired a constant sense of paranoia.”
Since Kohen released his statement, Pellow has responded to the allegations and apologized, adding that she will “step down from Sargent House.” In a statement posted on Sargent House’s Instagram, she said: “I sincerely apologize to Henry and had no idea how much my words and actions hurt you. I have sent you a personal message in which I once again express my regret over the events that have affected you. If you decide to share this message publicly, it is, of course, your decision.
“I also want to apologize to all former employees or artists who have been negatively affected by my actions. I was too inattentive and didn’t know about the harm caused by my bad behavior, I know it doesn’t justify the facts, and I take responsibility for any pain I caused to others. I am ashamed, and I sincerely repent.”
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Many artists, including Lingua Ignota, Chelsea Wolfe and King Woman, have since responded to the allegations, noting that they had previously severed relations with Pellow. Meanwhile, Brian Cook, who plays bass in Russian Circles and Sumac, defended Pellow on Twitter.
Cook wrote: “Katie can be harsh and rude, but I’ve never seen anything that would cause public outrage. Maybe I was just lucky. Conversely, I’ve seen how she used to help people out of bad situations. She placed people, paid medical bills, signed mortgages, dissuaded people from the ledges.”
He continued: “I applaud people for being angry at the information they have. But if I don’t know what’s really going on, then consider that maybe you don’t have the full picture either. And I won’t throw stones until I know who I can really trust in this mess.”
NME has reached out to Sargent House for comment.
