Russell Brand Speaks Out For The First Time Amid Sexual Abuse Scandal

BYCaroline FisherPublished on September 22, 20231.7K Views

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Russell Brand poses for photographs as he arrives to deliver The Reading Agency Lecture at The Institute of Education on November 25, 2014 in London, England. Russell Brand will deliver 'a manifesto on reading' which will be in part personal, sharing his own experience of books and reading while growing up in the UK. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

Russell Brand says it's been "an extraordinary and distressing week."

Earlier this month, four women's stories of being allegedly sexually abused Russell Brand were highlighted by The Times. He took to his YouTube channel just before the story went public, denying the allegations. He claimed that all of his previous sexual relationships were completely consensual, however, the women's accounts contradict that.

"I’ve received two extremely disturbing letters, or a letter and an email," he explained in the video. "One from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper, listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks. But amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks, are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute." Now, he's taken to Instagram to speak out for the first time since the story dropped. "By now, you're probably aware that the British government have asked big tech platforms to censor our online content," he began.

Russell Brand's IG Rant

"Some online platforms, have complied with that request," he continued. "What you may not know is that this happens in the context of the Online Safety Bill. This is UK legislation that grants sweeping surveillance and censorship powers." Brand went on, "I also don't imagine that you've heard of the trusted news initiative and now, as often is the case when a word like trusted is used as part of an acronym to describe an unelected body, trust is the last thing you should be offering."

"The trusted news initiative is a collaboration between big tech and legacy media organizations to target, patrol, choke and shut down independent media organizations," he added. Brand then went on to advocate for Rumble, claiming that he'll be streaming there moving forward, discussing topics such as media corruption. At no point in the video did he directly acknowledge the allegations, but he did tell supporters that he needs their support "more than ever." What do you think of Russell Brand's recent video? Share your thoughts in the comments section down below, and keep an eye on HNHH for more updates.

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About The Author

Caroline Fisher

Caroline Fisher is a News Writer at HotNewHipHop from Chicago, Illinois. She started at HNHH this year, and has since spent her time writing about all that is newsworthy in the world of hip-hop. With a drive for hunting down the hottest stories, she enjoys documenting new developments in culture and entertainment. She also has an appreciation for hip-hop and seeks to cover the most important trends and shifts. She has a Bachelor of Arts which she received at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Having graduated in 2022, she majored in English with a concentration in Media, Rhetoric and Cultural Studies. Specializing all things music, pop culture and entertainment, some of her favorite musical artists include Snoop Dogg, OutKast, and Nicki Minaj. When she’s not writing about music she’s also a fan of attending shows, watching the latest movies, staying up-to-date with current events, photography, and poetry.