German rock band Rammstein's lead singer accused of recruiting fans for sex

German rock band Rammstein's lead singer Till Lindermann has been accused of recruiting young female fans to have sex with him post-concert. The accusations came to light after one fan alleged that her drink had been spiked at an afterparty in Vilnius last month. The reports of sexual harassment have come just ahead of Rammstein's sold-out four-night residency at Munich's Olympic Stadium starting on Wednesday.

Following the reports, the concert promoter announced that there would be no afterparties following the shows nor a so-called 'row zero' experience that usually happens for fans directly in front of the stage.

The aftermath of the allegation

The publishing house Kiepenheuer & Witsch, which published an anthology of Lindemann’s poems in 2020, announced it was parting ways with the singer owing to the string of reports accusing him of sexual abuse. The publishing house has also raised objections to a two-year-old pornographic video in which the Rammstein frontman appears to insert his penis through a hole cut into a copy of a volume of his own poetry.

In a statement on its Instagram page, the band said it was taking the reports “extremely seriously” and urged fans to not pass judgment about the women who had spoken out, as well as the conduct of its own members.

"We tell our fans: it is important that you feel good and safe at our shows – in front and behind the stage,” the statement said.

An earlier statement on Twitter said, “With regard to the allegations circulating on the internet about Vilnius, we can rule out the possibility that what is being claimed took place in our environment.”

About Rammstein

Rammstein is considered Germany's most successful musical export. The band's status in their home country is more ambivalent. They are known for their heavy metal guitar sound and cabaret-style stage shows. The band was formed in 1994 and has a long history of provocatively using images and languages associated with the Nazi era, although Lindemann stated in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine that "we hate Nazis."

Known for their industrial heavy metal guitar sound and cabaret-style stage shows, Rammstein are one of Germany’s most successful musical exports, though the band’s status in their home country is more ambivalent.

The first allegations against the band were raised on 25 May by a 24-year-old fan from Northern Ireland who attended their concert in Vilnius, Lithuania. In a series of posts on social media, the woman said that ahead of her trip she had contacted a woman via Instagram who on chat forums was known to help fans gain access to exclusive parties before and after the show.

The woman, called Alena Makeeva, who on her Instagram page refers to herself as a “casting director on tour with Till Lindemann”, sent the 24-year-old a link to a private WhatsApp group and eventually texted her an invitation to join the “row zero” area at the Vilnius concert.

The woman was led to a small changing room during the interval of the concert where Lindemann joined her. When she made clear that she would not have sex with him, the singer reportedly reacted angrily.

At the pre-concert party, the woman said, she had two alcoholic drinks but started to act erratically later in the evening, leading her to believe that her drink had been spiked. A urine test she obtained from a pharmacy showed no sign of drugs in her system.

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In a follow-up post on 30 May, the woman said: “Till did NOT touch me. He accepted I did not want to have sex with him. I never claimed he raped me.”

More accusations against Lindermann

Soon after her post went viral, several others have been reporting similar stories in German media where fans were “cast” to have sex with the Rammstein frontman.

An article in Süddeutsche Zeitung cites another woman, who had attended an after-show party following a Rammstein concert in Vienna in 2019 and had consumed alcohol.

After passing out, this woman said she regained consciousness to find Lindemann “on top of me” inside a hotel room. According to Süddeutsche, the singer then asked her whether she wanted him to stop and later left the room.

While several stories have surfaced in German newspapers and on social media, only the Vilnius case has been reported to the police so far.

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