- Music
- 29 Jul 21
The singer-songwriter's career has been stalled since a number of women, including Phoebe Bridgers and his ex-wife Mandy Moore, accused him of sexual misconduct in early 2019.
Taking to Instagram to plead for a 'second chance' for his career, Ryan Adams is asking any record label for help as he is on the verge of losing his home.
In a series of since-deleted posts on Tuesday, Adams said: "I know I’m damaged goods. I know I am and they aren’t the ideal thing, but I had a label interested for months and they wasted my time. I’m months from losing my label, studio and my home.
"I just really want a second chance to make some music — maybe help other people believe you can get up out of the gutter and be something. I’m 46 and scared I’m gonna be living in my sisters basement. If you are a label and interested please let me know."
He added that the post was "sent with love and humility. I already got dropped by Capitol twice. Maybe someone still cares."
In another deleted post he begged: "Please if someone takes a chance on me and this music I’ll bust my ass to support it. Sorry to sound desperate."
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The disgraced singer made a series of similar pleas earlier in July when his cat Theo passed away.
"I have no record deal. I’m kinda broke. I have no friends ( ok I have my best friends for when I was a kid ) And Theo died," he said.
"I don’t have my old master tapes or recordings (they don’t care/answer my people). SO….if ANYBODY CAN HELP ME…please. I would love to make albums. Or just own a home (I don’t own a home). This is stupid. I miss Theo. I’m mad. I’ve had enough."
The singer-songwriter's career has been on a downward spiral since February 2019, when a number of women accused him of abuse and misconduct. A New York Times report revealed allegations of abuse from seven women, including Adams' ex wife Mandy Moore, Phoebe Bridgers and a young woman named Ava – who was underage at the time.
They detailed a pattern of manipulative behaviour in which he dangled career opportunities while simultaneously pursuing female artists for sex. There were occasions when he would allegedly turn vengeful if spurned, pulling offers of support in retaliation, and subjecting women to emotional and verbal abuse, and harassment in texts and on social media. Adams has denied all allegations.
In January this year he was cleared by an FBI investigation into whether he had engaged in sexting with Ava, who said Adams began messaging her in 2013, when she was a 14-year-old bass player just beginning a music career.
It was this FBI investigation that led to a planned album release and subsequent tour by Adams to be cancelled in 2019, though that album, Big Colors was released on his own PAX AM independent label in June. He also self-released another album, Wednesdays, in December 2020; his first release since the allegations.
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Adams published a letter in June 2020 in the Daily Mail, apologising for how he had “mistreated people” and claiming he was seeking professional help following the allegations after a period of 'isolation': "All I can say is that I’m sorry. It’s that simple."
"I’ve gotten past the point where I would be apologising just for the sake of being let off the hook and I know full well that any apology from me probably won’t be accepted by those I’ve hurt. I get that and I also understand that there’s no going back.
"To a lot of people this will just seem like the same empty bullshit apology that I’ve always used when I was called out, and all I can say is, this time it is different. Having truly realised the harm that I’ve caused, it wrecked me, and I’m still reeling from the ripples of devastating effects that my actions triggered."
However, this public apology was derided by some of those who had spoken out against Adams, including his ex-wife Mandy Moore – who claimed he had not apologised to her personally for the “unhealthy dynamic” of their relationship.
In her interview with Hot Press last year, Phoebe Bridgers discussed her experience with Adams, saying how she hoped "in some ways it’s becoming normalised to talk about that shit, because it certainly wasn’t before."
"I was kind of gaslit by the world," she continued. "Women for generations have been like, ‘Well, why would I start shit?’ If I had said something earlier, I think I would have been known as ‘the chick who called out Ryan Adams’. But because it was after a record or two, there was something else to focus on about me. So it’s dark – I used my privilege to call someone out. A lot of people aren’t as privileged as me, and would then be defined by saying something like that.”