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Rammstein drummer comments on allegations against Till Lindemann

By Andy Malt | Published on Monday 19 June 2023

Rammstein drummer Christoph Schneider has spoken out about allegations that have been against the band’s frontman Till Lindemann in relation to his conduct at after-show parties on their current tour. Schneider said that he did not believe that Lindemann had done anything illegal, but added that the singer has “distanced himself from us in recent years and created his own bubble”.

Allegations against Lindemann began to surface at the end of last month when a woman claimed online that she had been drugged after being invited to join pre- and after-show parties at a concert in Vilnius, Lithuania. After she went public, other women came forward with their own allegations.

Both Lindemann and the band have strongly denied these accusations. However, police in Berlin are now investigating Lindemann, and a spokesperson for the band told the BBC that they are conducting their own internal investigation.

Referring to the accusations made against Lindemann in recent weeks, Schneider issued a statement in German on social media this weekend.

“No, I don’t think anything criminal – such as the use of knockout drugs – happened”, he wrote. “I don’t think anything illegal was going on, I’ve never seen anything like it, nor heard anything like it from any of our crew of 100 people”.

“All I heard about Till’s parties was that adults were celebrating together”, he then added. “And yet things seem to have happened that, although legally OK, I personally don’t think are OK”.

He went on to say that “certain structures have emerged that went beyond the limits and values of the other band members” and, with that in mind, “it is also important to us that Till’s parties are not confused with our official after show parties”.

“Till has distanced himself from us in recent years and created his own bubble, with its own people, parties and projects”, he said.

“I believe Till when he tells us that he always wanted and still wants to give his guests a good time”, he continued. However, he went on: “How exactly these guests had imagined this, however, seems to differ in some cases from his own ideas”.

“The wishes and expectations of the women who have now come forward were probably not fulfilled”, he wrote. “According to their statements, they felt uncomfortable, on the edge of a situation that they could no longer control”.

“We want all of our guests to feel comfortable and safe with us”, he confirmed. “This is our standard. So I’m sorry to hear that some didn’t feel that way”.

“I don’t want this whole public dispute about our band to feed the extremes: neither the beast of social media – which has not yet been tamed by our society – nor paternalistic tendencies to deny women in their mid-20s the ability to make self-determined decisions about their sexuality”.

However, nor does he was to see any “victim blaming”, keen to ensure that people can “continue to talk about it if something happened to them”.

“I wish for a calm, level-headed reflection and processing, also in our band”, he concluded. “And all together, six of us. We stand together”.

The band have continued their European tour, which is scheduled to run through to the beginning of August, although their label Universal Music last week told reporters that “we have suspended marketing and promotional activities for the band’s recordings until further notice”.

A spokesperson for the major added: “The accusations against Till Lindemann have shocked us and we have the greatest respect for the women who have spoken out so courageously in public in this case”.

As the tour continues, a show in Switzerland on Saturday saw protests outside the venue. Their next performance is set for Madrid on Friday.