Rex Orange County, indie pop singer and songwriter, was charged with sexually assaulting a woman six times in London. After attending a trial in Southwark Crown Court, he pleaded not guilty and was released on unconditional bail before his trial on Jan. 3, 2023. Rex Orange County denied all allegations online as well, although it has been shocking and devastating to fans.
Rex, whose real name is Alexander O’Conner, debuted with his first album “Bcos U Will Never B Free” in 2014. From there, he only grew in popularity. A lot of indie fans, including myself, loved his music, from his first hit “Best Friend” to his other well known songs like “Pluto Projector” and “Loving is Easy.” He’s released three albums and has rather recently been on tour in America. A lot of his fans never expected anything like this of him, as most of his songs are about the pains of love. He has a charming voice and generally gives off the “good guy” vibe.
When a seemingly “good guy” like Rex Orange County allegedly does something terrible like sexual assault, it puts things into perspective. Too many celebrities and famous people do bad things and more often than not, continue to thrive in the spotlight. There’s a strong chance this will get swept under the rug and never talked about again. When it’s brought up with people, they’ll say something along the lines of “I know what happened but I try to separate the art from the artist.”
Although nothing has been confirmed, a lot of people tend to believe allegations like this. It’s more justified to do so than make excuses for the celebrity. Cancel culture is big in new generations and it’ll continue to be utilized as the internet keeps growing.
“Cancel culture” is when people stop supporting or ostracize a person (usually someone famous) for doing something they deem as wrong. Almost every celebrity has been “canceled” for some reason or another, but fluctuation of reasoning is one of the most staggering things. It could be for something random they said 20 years ago or it could be something genuinely serious. Regardless of reason, people still tend to forget about that kind of stuff rather quickly.
Although it hasn’t been explicitly stated, it’s safe to assume that Rex Orange County is “canceled” regardless of the upcoming court case. As of right now, these are just allegations against the singer and nothing can be done legally until Jan 3.