3 years after sex assault allegations, Ken Stringfellow plans to perform in Seattle

Ken Stringfellow, formerly of The Posies, plans to debut his new album and kickoff an international tour. The first show will take place on Saturday, in Pioneer Square, at a secret location sent only to ticket holders.

It’s been three years since three women told KUOW that Stringfellow abused them, saying that in some cases he bit them so hard they were bruised and forced them to have sex with him. Stringfellow has consistently denied the allegations. Days after KUOW published the story, he publicly announced he was taking time off to “reflect on the impact” he had on others.

“I have never been into anything kinky, into anything rough,” Stringfellow told KUOW in 2021, at a recording studio outside Seattle. “I experienced extreme violence firsthand as a teen. I'm sensitive to aggression, and it's not something I can be around. I am not down with violence. I don't want to hurt anyone, ever.”

Stringfellow’s tour stop in Eugene was canceled after a reporter with the Eugene Weekly questioned him about the allegations leveled against him by the three women in 2021. He told the Eugene Weekly that he had already addressed the accusations and that it was “time to move on.”

A joint victim statement published online, signed by eight women in the U.S., London, and Canada, urged people to reconsider supporting the shows.

“We recognize that some may choose to show their support by simply ignoring him. However, publicly withdrawing support for an alleged abuser holds significant value for the women who have come forward with allegations, or who may have been too afraid to do so,” the statement reads.

Strongfellow announced his new album in a Sept. 4 Facebook post in which he again denied the allegations.

“No doubt the intentions behind the article were malicious, but I cannot deny the benefits of the experience. So, at the end of the day, all I can say for now is: thank you - in seeking my destruction, you handed me the keys to my salvation,” Stringfellow wrote.

Heather Bowen, 50, from Seattle, was one of the women who signed onto the victim statement. She said she didn’t want to elaborate on her experience with Stringfellow.

Bowen said that following the 2021 allegations, Stringfellow failed to own up to his actions and apologize.

“I think that the world is kind of a seemingly pretty forgiving place often, and there's value in a good redemption story,” Bowen said. “And that could have been the path that was taken, and it wasn't.”

Stringfellow did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.