Christian rock band Newsboys have reportedly been dropped by their record label following allegations of sexual assault being levelled at former singer Michael Tait.
The band was formed in Queensland in 1985 by Peter Furler and George Perdikis. Perdikis left the band in 1987 before the band recorded their first album, while Furler has has departed and returned to the band several times, leaving for good in 2021.
The band’s been based in Nashville, Tennessee since 1987 and over the decades they’ve had many different members. In 2009 Michael Tait, formerly of DC Talk became the group’s singer but he departed in January this year after allegations of sexually inappropriate behaviour and substance abuse were made public.
Since then allegations of sexual assault have been levelled against Tait, which presumably triggered record label Capitol Christian Music Group to remove the band from their roster. Christian radio stations across the USA have also stopped playing the band’s hits.
The group currently consists of Adam Agee, Duncan Phillips, Jeff Frankenstein and Jody Davis. When the band played at the Elevate Music Festival on Sunday they said Tait’s actions had led to them being “cancelled.”
“As a result of all this, and the things that have come out that he’s done, he’s confessed, we’ve been dropped from our record label.” Agee said, describing the band as being “cancelled” by promoters and music venues.
A couple of weeks ago, our world was rocked by the devastating news about what that confession and what that double life really was.
“We were shocked because in January, he had mentioned a few things about substance abuse and some personal struggles he was having at home when he wasn’t on the road, but never anything of the magnitude of what we read and what was reported and never anything, ever just anything, that could have made us ever think that he could possibly be a danger to others or anything like that.”
Tait quit the band in January, and later allegations of inappropriate sexual behaviour and substance abuse appeared in the media.
The singer published a letter to his Instagram account saying that for decades he’s lived a double life confirming that reports of drug use and sexual activity are “sadly, largely true”. Fans took the statement as an acknowledgement of the allegations.
Subsequently more serious allegations have been made with a woman sating she had been raped in a hotel room by the band’s lighting technician, while Tait watched on.
She believes Tait drugged her after a late night gathering during the band’s pre-Christmas tour in 2014. The woman says she’s blacked out, and then was assaulted by the band’s lighting technician Matthew Brewer. She alleges that Tait was in the room while she was being sexually assaulted, and it was later covered up by the band’s then manager.
Brewer has denied the accusation saying the interaction was between consenting adults, while Steve Campbell, the band’s manager at the time has also vehemently denied any cover up. Tait has not responded to media requests for comment.
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