1.
DaBaby rose to prominence in the late 2010s with songs like “Suge” and features on songs with Post Malone and Dua Lipa. But then, in 2021, he was accused of making anti-gay comments while performing at the Rolling Loud Festival. He said to the crowd, “If you didn’t show up today with HIV, AIDS, or any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that’ll make you die in two to three weeks, then put your cellphone lighter up. Ladies, if your p**** smell like water, put your cellphone lighter up. Fellas, if you ain’t sucking d*** in the parking lot, put your cellphone lighter up.”
After backlash, he took to Instagram, saying, “My gay fans, they take care of themselves. They ain’t no nasty gay n—as. See what I’m saying? They ain’t no junkies in the street. The hell you talking about, n—as? Then I said if you ain’t sucking d— in the parking lot, put your cellphone lighter up. You know what my gay fans did? Put that motherf—ing light up, n—a, ’cause my gay fans ain’t going for that. They got class. They ain’t sucking no d— in no parking lot.” After his comments, DaBaby was dropped from multiple festival lineups.
His credit on the high-charting song “Levitating” with Dua Lipa was also dropped from multiple Billboard lists after radio stations started playing the solo version rather than the version with his feature. DaBaby then apologized for his comments, but the damage was done. Paired with several run-ins with the law and once hitting a female fan,* DaBaby’s next album failed to sell as well as his past albums, and DaBaby claimed he’d been “blackballed.” He has not released an album since.
2.
Børns (real name: Garrett Clark Borns) became an electropop darling in the 2010s, opening for acts such as Halsey and Bleachers. But then, in 2018, just after finishing up a tour with Lana del Rey, he was accused of sexual misconduct and grooming underage fans. Despite Borns denying the accusations, he was dropped from the All Things Go Fall Classic festival.
He took a long break from the public eye but quietly released an independent EP last year after being dropped from his label in 2020. This year, he wrote on Instagram that he did not groom anyone and that all relationships he had were consensual, but acknowledged “that I shouldn’t have engaged in relationships with fans,” saying, “I apologize to the women involved and hope they’ve found happiness. I didn’t show them the level of respect I could have in our communication or lack thereof, and I was irresponsible with their feelings.”
3.
One of the most heinous examples on this list is Ian Watkins, the lead singer for the alternative rock group Lost Prophets, which was active in the 2000s. In the late 2000s, police became aware of allegations of sexual abuse of children, but Watkins was ultimately not arrested until 2012, though this was due to drug-related suspicions. However, once his home and belongings were searched, the police quickly pivoted to an investigation of child sex abuse. He was ultimately hit with 24 separate sex offense-related charges, including attempting to rape a fan’s baby, sexual contact with a one-year-old, and charges related to his filming and possession of child sex abuse. He was ultimately sentenced to 29 years in prison, where he has been ever since.
4.
While he may still be able to make a comeback, Fetty Wap’s career is on hold after his 2022 drug trafficking conviction. Fetty skyrocketed to fame quickly with his first album, but his career languished afterward. Even Fetty himself said his career was on the decline before the conviction, which is why he turned to drug trafficking in the first place. He dropped an album late last year from prison, but it doesn’t appear to have charted. He won’t be eligible for release until 2029.
5.
Todrick Hall originally became famous through his YouTube videos and musical theater career, later appearing on American Idol. After being eliminated, he continued his career in reality shows, YouTube, and Broadway, and released several albums. However, things took a turn in 2019, when Hall faced a number of accusations, ranging from not paying collaborators and dancers to sexual harassment.
Then, in 2022, Hall appeared on Celebrity Big Brother and was slammed for behavior and comments people found mean. He went on to star in The Real Friends of WeHo on MTV, but it was not well-received. He also met recent backlash for posting a GoFundMe after his family dealt with a house fire. His most recent album was released without much fanfare, though he is set to perform in the West End this summer.
6.
Sia became huge in the 2010s, rising in fame along with Maddie Ziegler, who appeared in many of her music videos. However, things took a turn when Sia released her film Music, featuring Ziegler as a nonverbal autistic character. The backlash to the film was strong even before it came out, especially regarding Sia’s choice to cast a neurotypical actor in the role of a child with autism. Still, Sia only made things worse during the film’s promotion, most notably when an actor with autism called her out for not casting someone like her, and Sia replied, “Maybe you’re just a bad actor.” Sia also stated she “actually tried working with a beautiful young girl, nonverbal on the spectrum, and she found it unpleasant and stressful.”
The movie was panned and called ableist, with reviews noting Ziegler’s performance was like a caricature of an autistic person. It also faced criticism for its portrayal of the use of restraint on autistic people, which is not recommended and can be dangerous and even fatal. Sia later apologized for her problematic depiction and then deleted her Twitter account.
Following a long break (during which Sia later said she’d suffered a relapse), Sia released a new album just months ago, but it charted far lower than her previous albums.
7.
Natalia Kills slowly rose in fame over the early 2010s, opening for acts like Kesha, the Black-Eyed Peas, and Katy Perry, as well as featuring on an LMFAO song.
8.
Natalia Kills’ husband, Willy Moon, was similarly rising in the music scene after going viral for his hit “Yeah Yeah.” The two, who were married, both looked to be getting more notoriety with their first foray into reality television as judges on The X Factor New Zealand.
However, in their very first live show, Kills and Moon made such cruel comments to a contestant that both of their careers were almost immediately ruined. After contestant Joe Irvine sang “Cry Me a River,” Kills called Irvine out for dressing like Moon, with Moon joining in. The audience booed, and the other judges tried to step in, but they kept going.
Natalia later issued an apology, saying, “A lot goes on behind the scenes of a reality TV show and [what] you see isn’t always the whole story. … I was encouraged to be outspoken, and things got out of hand. … Joe, I hope you can forgive me and I wish you all the best!” but the damage was done. The duo was let go from the show after a viral petition to get them fired. Natalia did continue her career, but she changed her name and started a different band with Moon, which still has not released their debut album.
9.
R&B duo Milli Vanilli reached worldwide fame in the late ’80s with their debut album, leading them to win the award for Best New Artist at the 1990 Grammy Awards. However, their careers quickly took a nosedive when their producer Frank Farian revealed they didn’t sing any of the album, which was confirmed by member Rob Pilatus. The Grammys swiftly revoked their award.
While Pilatus and co-member Fab Morvan attempted multiple comebacks, the scandal followed them, and they were unable to gain traction again.
10.
Billy Squier skyrocketed to fame in the early 1980s, but by 1984, his career was essentially over. Why? The blame lies with the music video for his song “Rock Me Tonite,” which was so bad many claimed it singlehandedly tanked his career. Even Squier said so: “The video had a deleterious effect on my career. The tour before, I was selling out arenas faster than Sinatra, and as soon as that video came out, I was playing to half houses,” he said in 2011, according to I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution.
The song itself was a major hit, but the video — which mostly featured Squier dancing around in a bedroom, rolling on the floor, and ripping his shirt off — made people scratch their heads. “The video misrepresents who I am as an artist,” Squier told the authors of I Want My MTV. “I was a good-looking, sexy guy. That certainly didn’t hurt in promoting my music. But in this video, I’m kind of a pretty boy. And I’m preening around a room. People said, ‘He’s gay,’ or ‘He’s on drugs’. It was traumatizing to me.”
11.
Vanilla Ice rose to fame incredibly quickly with “Ice, Ice, Baby” in 1990, but he attracted controversy just as quickly. First, reported details about his past (namely that he had a rough background) were proven false. His music also was criticized for being white-washed and “mainstream.” Then, Jim Carrey parodied him on In Living Color, he had a disastrous appearance on The Arsenio Hall Show, and he was the subject of a diss track by 3rd Bass. Finally, he starred in the panned film Cool as Ice, which effectively ended his movie career before it began.
He then attempted a career in motocross, jet skiing, and reality TV and had multiple run-ins with the law. While he did attempt a comeback, it was unsuccessful, and his career never recovered.
12.
Iggy Azalea looked like she was going to become huge after the success of “Fancy.” With “Problem” and “Black Widow,” Azalea proved she wasn’t just a one-hit wonder. But her career stalled after continued accusations of racism and profiting off of Black culture — including using a “Blaccent” — as well as her perceived inability to freestyle and public feuds. She eventually canceled her debut tour. She continued to make music but acknowledged her career had “fallen off a cliff” and never returned to her “Fancy” level of success.
13.
CeeLo Green went massively viral with his hit song “Fuck You” in 2010, which was followed by a stint guest-hosting on The Voice, along with performing at the Super Bowl halftime show. But allegations of drugging and sexually assaulting a woman in 2012 derailed his career before he could become an A-List star.
Rape charges were not filed due to a lack of evidence, and his charges were reduced to supplying Ecstasy to the woman. Green pled no contest and was sentenced to three years of probation. Green may have continued his career — his lawyer claimed the encounter was consensual — but then he took to Twitter to write things such as “If someone is passed out they’re not even WITH you consciously! so WITH Implies consent” and “People who have really been raped REMEMBER!!!”
Green quit The Voice (reportedly believing he’d be fired, though he later said, “I ran my course there just naturally”), and his reality show, The Good Life, was canceled. Green is still around today, but not even close to the degree of his early 2010s fame.
14.
Ben Hopkins of Pwr Bttm also saw their career derailed by sexual misconduct allegations. Just as the group was gaining traction, days before the release of their second album, Hopkins was accused of being a sexual predator. Their label dropped them, streaming platforms removed their music, and their upcoming tour was canceled. Hopkins says the anonymous accusations are false and eventually released music as a solo artist in 2020 after taking a break from the public eye. However, they have yet to release a new album or make a full comeback.
15.
Another example? Mystikal, who had steadily risen in fame over the ’90s and early 2000s. In 2003, he seemed on top of the world, gaining his first-ever Album of the Year Grammy nomination and starring in the film 13 Dead Men. However, in early 2004, he was convicted of sexual battery and sentenced to six years in prison.
Mystikal attempted to make a comeback when he was released in 2010 and found some success in early performances. However, he continued to have run-ins with the law, being accused of rape and domestic battery, among other charges, and he is currently facing a life sentence (he pled not guilty to all charges, and his former attorney proclaimed his innocence). He has not released a solo album since 2001.
16.
Canadian-Chinese singer Kris Wu rose to fame through the Canadian-Korean boy band Exo before finding major success as a solo artist. He also made waves as an actor, appearing in the Vin Diesel film XXX: Return of Xander Cage, and seemed poised to break into the American market. But in 2021, the 30-year-old Wu was accused of sexual assault of a 17-year-old two years prior. He denied the allegations but was arrested and ultimately sentenced to 13 years in prison, a conviction which was upheld upon appeal.
17.
Another musician whose career was derailed by jail time is Tory Lanez. Lanez was a rising star who was finding mainstream success in the late 2010s — and then he was accused of shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020. He was eventually convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Time will tell if he attempts to make a comeback after that.
18.
Despite legal trouble, 6ix9ine shot to fame quickly in the late 2010s, but his involvement with the Nine Trey gang led to his arrest in 2018 on racketeering, robbery, and firearm charges. He was ultimately sentenced to two years in prison after testifying against other Nine Trey members, leading to him being labeled a “snitch” and essentially ruining his credibility in hip-hop.
19.
Keri Hilson had a wildly successful debut album and continued that success with her second album. But she never reached the career highs that were expected for her — due in part to her allegedly shading Beyoncé and Ciara in a few lyrics in her 2009 song “Turnin’ Me On” (which Hilson denied). Hilson continued to face what she referred to as “verbal abuse” from Beyoncé fans for years and ended up taking a years-long break from music, later revealing she was dealing with depression and the grief of her father’s passing. She still has not released another album.
Hilson eventually alleged her label had told her to diss Beyoncé, saying she was too young and insecure to refuse. She says she’s since made up with Beyoncé.
20.
Fiona Apple was an ingenue when her debut album was released to widespread acclaim, but public opinion turned swiftly against her when she won the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist. She got up on stage and said she hadn’t prepared a speech, then famously said, “This world is bullshit, and you shouldn’t model your life … about what you think that we think is cool and what we’re wearing and what we’re saying and everything.” Apple was labeled afterward — in her own words — a “brat bitch loose cannon.”
She later said she felt like a “sellout” when she won and became “a paper doll in order to be accepted.” Her infamous speech, along with storming offstage during a show in 2000, led her to be seen as “unstable,” which followed her for her entire career. While Apple has continued to have an acclaimed, Grammy-award-winning career, she never again reached her pre-2000 commercial heights.
21.
Pop duo Karmin had just begun to find mainstream success (after making a name for themselves with YouTube covers) with their 2012 EP Hello. However, their performance on SNL that same year is widely cited as one of the worst SNL performances of all time. This effectively killed their momentum, and they ended up disbanding the group and starting a new music endeavor, Qveen Herby.
22.
While Robin Thicke was around for years before “Blurred Lines,” the song catapulted him into global superstardom, and he became a household name, getting nominated for his first non-production-related Grammy in 2014. But his performance of the song with Miley Cyrus at the 2013 VMAs generated significant controversy, as did the lyrics and music video for Thicke’s song (Thicke also lost a lawsuit about the song’s similarities to Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up”).
Thicke may have been able to save his career — but his highly publicized divorce and ensuing album focused on getting his wife back, which was a massive critical failure, cemented his ousting from the music A-list. His next album wasn’t until 2021 and did not cement a comeback for Thicke.
23.
In the early 2010s, Azealia Banks seemed poised for a long career in the music business, but since then, her outspoken Twitter rants and feuds have meant that she’s more well-known for her controversial online presence than her music. While she still performs, she certainly has not achieved the level of mainstream success she might have.
24.
Marilyn Manson rose to fame in the ’90s as a controversial rock singer and has remained famous for the past few decades — but things took a major turn in 2021 when his ex-fiancée Evan Rachel Wood accused him of sexual assault and abuse. Other women quickly came forward with their own allegations against Manson, and Manson’s label and agency dropped him.
Manson denied all allegations and sued Wood for defamation and persuading other women to lie about him, but the suit failed, and he was later ordered to pay Wood’s legal fees. Meanwhile, he was also accused of sexual assault of a minor back in the ’90s last year (he pled no contest) and was sentenced to community service for a misdemeanor assault of a videographer in 2019.
In light of the wave of accusations and turning public opinion (Rolling Stone called him a “monster hiding in plain sight” in 2021), it seems unlikely Manson’s career will recover, even though some women’s cases have been dismissed or settled, and one victim recanted (a judge decided the victim’s new statements would not be used as evidence). He has not released music or appeared in film and television since 2021, and just days ago, a judge ruled not to toss a lawsuit by a woman accusing Manson of abuse when she was underage.
Public opinion of Kelly began to drastically shift, with protests outside his concerts and studio, and Spotify, Apple Music, and Pandora releasing statements that they would stop promoting his music — many members of Kelly’s personal team also quit. 2019’s six-episode docuseries Surviving R. Kelly further tarnished the star’s reputation, causing Kelly’s record company to drop him and upcoming shows to be canceled.
Soon after, Kelly was hit with aggravated criminal sexual abuse and assault charges against a minor, as well as sex trafficking and sex work charges, and he was later found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison. In another trial, he was found guilty of child sexual abuse and pornography and sentenced to 20 years in prison (which — except for one — could be served concurrently with his 30-year sentence). Kelly is currently serving out his sentence.
26.
Chris Brown experienced a major fall from grace after he was arrested on suspicion of making criminal threats following a pre-Grammys party he attended with then-girlfriend Rihanna. He was ultimately sentenced to five years of probation and community service, as well as domestic violence counseling. He later admitted to hitting Rihanna in his car during an argument.
Photos of a bruised and injured Rihanna ignited public hatred of Brown, and his next album, Graffiti, sold notably worse than his prior album (it also was critically panned). He lost endorsement deals, and multiple celebrities spoke out against him.
However, Brown is one of the examples from this list whose career made a pretty full recovery. His next album, F.A.M.E., debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, which was his first album to do so. He still remains successful, though it’s true that there are still those who believe he doesn’t deserve to be. In fact, Brown complained last year about people who “still hate” him for his “mistake.”
27.
Gary Glitter enjoyed a decades-long career as a glam rock artist in the UK, and his legacy seemed overall cemented until he was arrested in the late ’90s on child sex image charges. He was found guilty and sentenced to only four months in prison, but his career never recovered. He moved to Cuba, then Cambodia, and afterward Vietnam, where he was convicted of sexual abuse in 2016. Glitter claimed the charges were a conspiracy and that he was innocent. He was sentenced to three years in prison but was deported to the UK after two and a half.
He had initially planned a comeback, but this never materialized. In 2015, he was sentenced to another 16 years in prison for sexual abuse from the ’70s and ’80s. He was released early in 2023, then incarcerated again a month later after violating license conditions.
28.
Singer-songwriter Ryan Adams, who was well-known for championing young female artists’ careers, was accused by several women (including ex-wife Mandy Moore) in 2017 of “dangling career opportunities while simultaneously pursuing female artists for sex.” If the women refused, he allegedly grew angry and resorted to emotional and verbal abuse as well as harassment. Adams did apologize but did not specifically confirm the allegations. “I am fully accountable for my harmful behavior, and will be for my actions moving forward,” he wrote in a public apology. He was also investigated for an alleged online sexual relationship with a minor, but charges were not filed.
Adams’s career suffered greatly, with Adams releasing his next two albums through his own label (the albums did not chart in America or England) and taking to social media with desperate pleas for labels to sign him. “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,” he wrote, saying he was close to becoming homeless.
In 2022, Adams performed a sold-out show at Carnegie Hall but did not invite any journalists. He hired a new team, including crisis-PR specialist Howard Bragman, who spoke to Variety, saying, “We want to show that he has a real team behind him that believes in him and supports him, and that he’s putting a life together. We want people to notice, and if they want to move forward with him, here’s where we are.” He’s released eleven albums since – including four on a single day — that did not receive much attention.
29.
Nick Carter rose to prominence in the ’90s with boy band the Backstreet Boys. He then embarked on a successful solo career, but things took a turn for Carter in 2017. After a report that Carter had allegedly sexually assaulted a fan in 2006, former Dream member Melissa Schuman wrote a blog post accusing Carter of sexually assaulting her in 2003 and later sued him for sexual assault and battery.
In 2022, Shannon Ruth also sued Carter for sexual battery for an alleged incident from 2001. Following all the allegations, ABC canceled a holiday special with the Backstreet Boys. Carter, for his part, has denied all allegations. He toured this year and announced a new album, so time will tell if he’s able to make a comeback.
30.
Another international musician who ruined his own career with alleged sexual assault was Sigur Rós drummer Orri Páll Dýrason. Artist Meagan Boyd accused Dýrason in an Instagram post of raping her in 2013. Dýrason denied the allegations but quickly left the band, writing on Facebook, “I will do anything in my power to get myself out of this nightmare, but out of respect for those actually suffering from sexual violence, I will not take that fight public.”
Dýrason never rejoined the band, which struggled in the wake of the allegations and also a tax evasion case, but finally released another album in June — without Dýrason and adding back in old keyboardist Kjartan “Kjarri” Sveinsson. Dýrason seems to have all but vanished from the public eye.
31.
Trey Songz has a long history of being accused of sexual assault, domestic violence, disorderly conduct, and aggravated assault over the years (as well as sexual intimidation by Keke Palmer),* but it seemed like the public and the industry largely ignored these allegations. WNBA player Dylan Gonzalez’s 2022 allegations appeared to turn the tide, with two more sexual assault allegations following, including a rape case that was initially dismissed because it was past the statute of limitations but has since been refiled. Songz ultimately settled.
In this second instance, where a woman claims Songz groped her and pulled her bra off in public, she is seeking $10 million. Songz also accepted a plea deal for a physical assault charge. With no new album on the horizon, it seems unlikely Songz’s career will recover anytime soon — especially because whenever he is mentioned in the press, it is usually in relation to continued backlash.
32.
Finally, Ashlee Simpson also largely ruined her career after being caught lip-syncing on Saturday Night Live in 2004. When the wrong track began to play (the same one she’d already performed), Simpson did not sing but did a strange dance. She later blamed the band before saying she’d lost her voice due to acid reflux and was ordered by doctors not to sing.
The singer’s career did continue, but it was definitely affected and did not see the same momentum as it had pre-scandal. Her second album did not sell even close to as well as the first, and a 2005 Orange Bowl performance saw her getting booed by the crowd. While Simpson did end up appearing on SNL again, these days, she is perhaps best known for the lip-syncing incident over any of her music.
