A former employee said, “I’m afraid it’s all gonna go away.” It’s a strain of unease that’s sinking in all across the country. But Rick and the former employees, for the most part, felt utterly alone.Īnd as Webster dropped out of headlines and local police determined that the allegations were too old to pursue a case, it was unclear what the actual consequences for the publicist would be. After a DJ sued Taylor Swift for saying he groped her, she won her countersuit and later donated to Time’s Up, and artists like Kacey Musgraves and Maren Morris have criticized harassment in the industry. In Hollywood, hundreds of women signed on to the Time’s Up initiative to combat sexual abuse, whereas country had a smattering of critical voices that never quite became a chorus. Some also said this sent a chilling message to other victims on Music Row: If they came forward, no one would take up their cause. Victims saw this hush as a sign that sexual misconduct was not taken seriously in Nashville, and that Webster might catch himself midfall. There was no pronounced support for the people who said Webster hurt them, and thus, unlike in other industries, there was no signal to other victims that now was the time to start naming names. “Kirt has not been and is not involved in my new company,” he said. Westby did not comment on the allegations against Webster or on whether they were still a couple. Westby is Webster’s long-term romantic partner, 12 former employees told BuzzFeed News public records show the men living at the same address from 2013 through November 2017. Most people associated with Webster said nothing about the allegations, including his firm’s second-in-command, Jeremy Westby, who was announced as Webster’s successor before leaving to start an independent firm on Nov. Kid Rock released a more sharply worded statement than Parton’s, but nonetheless said that he too hoped the allegations were false. Parton and Kid Rock, among others, dropped Webster as their representative. “Thanks, Dolly, that's great.” Parton did not respond to requests for comment on this story. Many simply wanted Webster’s former clients to say “I believe you.” “Dolly Parton hopes that we're all lying,” Rick said with a scoff, referring to the statement she put out following Rick’s allegations, that she was “hoping” the stories weren’t true. Rick said one thing distinguished Nashville’s sidestep from the eruptions in Hollywood, media, and government: A vast majority of country artists and executives have refused to even acknowledge anything is wrong.įormer employees said they wanted Webster roundly condemned, and what they got was a sprinkle of tepid disapproval. Webster retreated from his firm, but his representative released a statement saying he had done so “to focus on combating the egregious and untrue allegations made against him.” He did not respond to multiple requests for comment on a detailed summary of this story, and has stayed out of the public eye since November.Īs the number of voices swelled, Rick hoped that the national reckoning with sexual assault and harassment would hit country music too. Speaking with BuzzFeed News, three more described a hellish work life with a boss who constantly made crude jokes and talked about his employees’ bodies, pantomimed masturbation in the office, and bragged about trading access to his biggest client, Dolly Parton, for nude photos one said Webster invited him and another man to a “sleepover.” The total number of people who have come forward with stories of Webster’s workplace sexual harassment is now well over two dozen. In the weeks that followed, more than 20 former employees came forward with stories of workplace sexual harassment and unwanted touching. Although Webster, 43, claimed through a representative that his former client’s story was “untrue,” he stepped away from his firm almost instantly after it hit the local press. 27, in the midst of #MeToo, he wanted to make sure the prominent publicist never abused anyone again. When Rick posted his story on Facebook on Oct. Rick said this continued until one day the 21-year-old singer woke up naked in bed next to Webster with no memory of how he’d gotten there. In October 2017, Rick posted on Facebook that in 2008 Kirt Webster, who represented some of country music’s biggest stars, repeatedly coerced him into sexual acts. It had been seven weeks since Austin Rick started telling his story, and he was angry.
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