Duffy Reveals That She Stopped Releasing Music After Being Assaulted

Mike Wass | February 25, 2020 5:56 pm

In 2008, Duffy was on top of the world. The British crooner landed a global hit with “Mercy” and followed it up by releasing one of the most-successful albums of the ’00s. In addition to selling 7 million copies, Rockferry earned the 35-year-old a Grammy and three BRIT Awards. Another album followed in 2010, but she suddenly fell off the radar. We now know why. Aimee Duffy (her full name) was the victim of sexual assault. “You can only imagine the amount of times I thought about writing this,” the Welsh native begins an open letter to fans on Instagram.

“The way I would write it, how I would feel thereafter,” the hitmaker continues. “Many of you wonder what happened to me, where did I disappear to and why. A journalist contacted me, he found a way to reach me and I told him everything this past summer. He was kind and it felt so amazing to finally speak. The truth is, and please trust me I am ok and safe now, I was raped and drugged and held captive over some days. Of course I survived. The recovery took time.” She then opens up about the aftermath.

“I can tell you in the last decade, the thousands and thousands of days I committed to wanting to feel the sunshine in my heart again, the sun does now shine,” Duffy reveals. “You wonder why I did not choose to use my voice to express my pain? I did not want to show the world the sadness in my eyes. I asked myself, how can I sing from the heart if it is broken? And slowly it unbroke. In the following weeks I will be posting a spoken interview. If you have any questions I would like to answer them, in the spoken interview, if I can.”

Read Duffy’s full open letter below. Hopefully, this is the first step towards reclaiming her sense of self and releasing new music. She would be welcomed back to the music world with open arms.

View this post on Instagram

You can only imagine the amount of times I thought about writing this. The way I would write it, how I would feel thereafter. Well, not entirely sure why now is the right time, and what it is that feels exciting and liberating for me to talk. I cannot explain it. Many of you wonder what happened to me, where did I disappear to and why. A journalist contacted me, he found a way to reach me and I told him everything this past summer. He was kind and it felt so amazing to finally speak. The truth is, and please trust me I am ok and safe now, I was raped and drugged and held captive over some days. Of course I survived. The recovery took time. There’s no light way to say it. But I can tell you in the last decade, the thousands and thousands of days I committed to wanting to feel the sunshine in my heart again, the sun does now shine. You wonder why I did not choose to use my voice to express my pain? I did not want to show the world the sadness in my eyes. I asked myself, how can I sing from the heart if it is broken? And slowly it unbroke. In the following weeks I will be posting a spoken interview. If you have any questions I would like to answer them, in the spoken interview, if I can. I have a sacred love and sincere appreciation for your kindness over the years. You have been friends. I want to thank you for that x Duffy Please respect this is a gentle move for me to make, for myself, and I do not want any intrusion to my family. Please support me to make this a positive experience.

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