Disgraced: Heathcliff Berru (above) has been forced to resign after being accused of sexual misconduct by several women, which he has since blamed on his addictions
Publicist Heathcliff Berru, who was forced to resign after being accused of sexual harassment by a growing number of female Indie rock musicians over the past two days, broke his silence about the allegations Tuesday, apologizing for the misconduct and blaming his actions on drugs and alcohol.
Allegations of sexual transgressions against the now-former CEO of Life or Death public relations first came to light when Amber Coffman, a singer and guitarist for the band Dirty Projectors, tweeted Monday about an encounter she had with Berru.
Before long, several other female artists and industry figures have come out accusing Berru of similar behavior.
The list of accusers continued growing throughout the day Tuesday, with at least one woman suggesting that Berru had drugged her before groping her.
The publicist, who has represented D'Angelo, Tyler the Creator and RZA, eventually was forced to step down as CEO of Life or Death after several musical acts severed their ties with the firm over the allegations.
Late Tuesday evening, Berru released a lengthy statement to LA Weekly, citing his 'losing battle against drugs and alcohol' as the underlying cause of his 'alleged inappropriate behavior' towards women.
‘I am deeply sorry for those who I have offended by my actions and how I have made certain women feel,’ he writes. ‘If I crossed the line of decency or respectfulness in situations when I was drunk and under the influence, there is no excuse of course.’
In his statement, however, Berru flatly denies ever drugging anyone for the purpose of taking sexual advantage of them.
'Nevertheless, I do not want to be the type of person who would let drugs or alcohol take command of his life and compromise how he treats people,' Berru goes on to say, adding that he will be checking into a drugs and alcohol rehabilitation facility to try and clean up his act.
'I have already lost my wife, abandoned my family, and destroyed those I love as a result of my shameful, embarrassing, unacceptable behavior,' he says in the statement. 'I deeply apologize to them as well.'
Amber Coffman (above) , a singer and guitarist for acclaimed band Dirty Projectors, first tweeted Monday about an encounter she had with Life or Death public relations and management CEO Heathcliff Berru
Coffman alleges that Berru 'rubbed her a**' and 'bit her hair' at a bar a couple of years ago in front of four male friends
Amber Coffman sent the tweet above about her alleged encounter with Heathcliff Berru
'I have already lost my wife, abandoned my family, and destroyed those I love as a result of my shameful, embarrassing, unacceptable behavior,' he says in the statement. 'I deeply apologize to them as well.'
He concludes the letter by pointing out that the allegations against him do not reflect on Life or Death PR or its staff, headed by president Nick Dierl, who has replaced Berru as CEO following his resignation.
‘The company shouldn't have to deal with this distraction and I want Nick and the rest of the team to continue to do their good work while I take care of myself,’ Berru sums up.
In her tweets, Amber Coffman, who emerged as the first woman to publicly accuse Berru of harassment, alleges that in one incident with Berru, he 'rubbed her a**' and 'bit her hair' at a bar a couple of years ago.
'Was just re-telling/re-remembering a story abt (sic) how a very popular music publicist RUBBED my ass and BIT my hair at a bar a couple years ago,' Coffman tweeted Monday evening.
'This was someone I barely knew and had just met. He did it in front of 4 of my male friends. Still makes me so damn mad thinking about it.
'Still mad at myself as well for not punching him in the nose, but I totally froze up. Weird survival instinct I guess.
'Just was looking at their current roster and it's amazing. People I know even. Funny how s*****, fake a** people can have so much success.
'And in case anyone was wondering who the a** rubbing, hair biting mother f***** was, I'm not afraid to say it-
'It was Heathcliff Berru, at Life or Death PR and MGMT.'
Coffman shared the above details on Twitter about the night the alleged incident happened
She wrote that she is 'still mad' at herself for not reacting to what allegedly happened that night
Coffman wrote the above tweet about the Berru's roster of clients at his PR and management company
Before naming Berru on Twitter, Coffman sent the above tweet with her claims against him
Since stepping forward with her claims against Berru, Coffman, 31, has received several message of support from others on social media. She was inspired to step forward with her story after seeing that he represents some of her friends in the music industry
In another tweet she wrote: 'I've been told many women have had scary stories about him ... but are scared to speak up.'
After Coffman wrote about her alleged encounter with Berru on Twitter, several other women came forward with their claims against him.
Yasmine Kittles of the band Tearist tweeted another claim of sexual misconduct against Berru, while Motormouthmedia owner Judy Miller Silverman wrote: 'I have flat out told people privately what he did and they still hired him.'
Bethany Cosentino, a member of the band Best Coast, also wrote on Twitter: 'I was too freaked out to ever say anything. Seriously, he's not a good person on any level.'
Cosentino called Berru a 'scumbag' and thanked Coffman for coming forward.
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Coffman sent the above tweet naming Heathcliff Berru as the person who allegedly 'rubbed her ass' and 'bit her hair'
Coffman sent the above tweet late Monday night hours after accusing Berru of sexual misconduct
After coming forward with her accusations against Berru, several other women stepped forward as well
Several women have in the music industry have stepped forward with claims against Berru since Coffman (above) first came forward Monday night on Twitter
Beth Martinez, a music publicist at Danger Village PR, also tweeted an account of Berru's alleged behavior in which she claims he 'repeatedly put his hand down my shirt while driving me home after I told him to stop many times.'
Martinez wrote that she is 'fairly certain I've been roofied by him or members of his crew on more than one occasion.'
She continued: 'I was really afraid that if I told anyone or did anything, it would hurt my career.'
Brooklyn musician Roxy Lange accused Berru of trying to force her to perform a sexual act in a cab and then nearly assaulting her when she was just 21 years old
Martika Finch, a coordinator at Bonnaroo, claimed to have had a similar experience with Berru, saying in a tweet that the publicist harassed her at a music festival a couple of years ago and she told him to leave her alone.
In an email sent to Brooklyn Magazine, Brooklyn musician singer Roxy Lange said that she too was assaulted by Berru in 2007, when she was 21 years old.
'He kept trying to force me to give him a b***job in a cab and wouldn’t stop pushing my head into his lap forcefully, with his pants unzipped and penis out in the open,' she writes.
According to Lange, Berru later followed her home and pushed his way into her apartment, where he allegedly attempted to force himself on her but could not perform sexually because he was 'too drunk and coked up,' she claims.
'He then pissed himself and fell asleep in my bed while I laid there, a very drunk 21 year-old experiencing NY nightlife for the first time and this happened to me,' Lange reveals.
The musician says when she ran into Berru and his wife at a grocery store a year ago, the PR agent gave her a hug, which she says made her sick to her stomach, drudging up the memory of their encounter from years earlier.
'He’s a disgusting, loser scumbag who doesn’t respect women,' Lange concludes.
Life or Death PR announced Tuesday that he is stepping down as CEO.
'Life or Death has a zero tolerance policy for the type of conduct alleged in today's on-line postings. We take these allegations very seriously,' a statement from the company reads.
Martika Finch, a coordinator at Bonnaroo, claimed that Berru harassed her at a music festival a few years back
Finch shared her story in a tweet in response to Amber Coffman's account of her interaction with Berru
Yasmine Kittles (left) of the band Tearist tweeted another claim of sexual misconduct against Berru, followed by
'The men and women who make up this company do not, and will not, condone or tolerate any conduct described in the on-line postings.
'Life Or Death is 3 men and 3 women who are committed to promoting art and serving the clients that we're so privileged to represent.
'We are taking measures to ensure that the alleged behavior did not, and will not, make its way into company operations or impact our commitment to promoting art and assisting our clients.
'We are grateful to Heathcliff Berru for all the work he's done to date and his creative vision at the company. We appreciate and support his decision to step down as CEO of Life Or Death.'
It's unclear if any of the women have filed a police report about the alleged incidents that have occurred with Berru.
Since the allegations against Berru surfaced, the band Wavves announced on Twitter that they've fired Berru as their publicist.
The Brooklyn-based rock band DIIV also has parted ways with Berru, followed by singer-songwriter Kelela, who tweeted that she stands 'with all the women who are courageously speaking out.'
Guitarist Sadie Dupuis, of Speedy Ortiz, shared in a tweet that their band will no longer be represented by Life or Death in the wake of the scandal.
'We're thankful to the folks at life or death we worked w directly (not heathcliff). but after hearing these stories we're no longer w/ LoD,' Dupuis wrote Tuesday. 'wishing best to folks who worked there. they seem nauseated. but doesn't feel personally ok to work w a company built by an attempted rapist.'
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