Renowned DJ Tim Westwood has been accused of sexually abusing many women who claim he abused his position in the music industry to take advantage of them.
Three women accused the DJ of opportunistic and predatory sexual behavior, while four others claimed to have been touched by him at events.
Women who were in their late teens or early 20s, when they say the incidents happened, described their experiences to the Guardian and the BBC as part of a joint investigation by the former BBC Radio 1 DJ.
The earliest alleged incident occurred in 1992; the latest in 2017
One woman said, “Someone who takes advantage of my naivety and lack of confidence is not something I should be ashamed of.”
Westwood categorically denied all charges. A spokesman said they were completely fake and denied it completely.
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The women, who are all black, decided to tell their stories after anonymous allegations of inappropriate behavior about Westwood circulating on social media in June 2020.
In a statement at the time, Westwood denied any wrongdoing, saying the allegations online were fabricated, fake and baseless.
The Guardian and the BBC, which released a BBC Three documentary about the story, have since spoken to seven women who have made a number of separate allegations about the DJ’s behavior.
Tim Westwood in 1999. The veteran DJ remains a key figure in hip-hop music in the UK. Photo: Andy Hall / The Observer
Some women say they have felt incapable of talking about their experiences before. They feared that their bills would not be taken seriously because they were so young at the time of the alleged incidents – and that racial discrimination would also cause people to minimize, reject or ignore their allegations.
Three of the women accused Westwood of opportunistic and predatory sexual behavior when they agreed to meet with him, thinking they would discuss the music industry or their own work. They were 17, 19 and 20 at the time of the alleged incidents.
Four other women claim that the DJ touched them while they were taking pictures with him after one of his performances in a nightclub.
The Guardian and the BBC know the identities of all women who do not know each other and have never spoken. None of the women reported their interaction to the police; everyone asked to remain anonymous.
Already 64 years old, Westwood is one of the most famous names in hip-hop and rap in the UK for the last 40 years. He became the infallible voice of the genre when he hosted the first rap show on BBC Radio 1 in 1994, which is credited with giving fresh talent an unparalleled platform while enticing the world’s greatest rappers – from Public Enemy to Jay-Z – in his show.
Westwood has always courted some controversy, often playing the image of a bad boy with mic jokes that can be provocative and sexually explicit. In 1999, he was wounded in a car shooting, with one bullet passing through the seat of the car he was in and another through his arm.
He became a key figure in black music in the UK and was named Best DJ at the Mobo Awards (Music of Black Origin) many times.
After 20 years, the self-proclaimed Big Dawg left Radio 1 as part of a change in his schedule on Saturday night, and now hosts a show at Capital Xtra as well as regular club nights.
Westwood’s lawyers said he was a respected and extremely successful DJ. They said he flatly denied the serious allegations against him.
“Any allegation that he acted or acted in the manner described would be untrue and seriously defamatory.” They said he wanted to make it clear that he had not acted in the manner described.
Women
Isabel: I didn’t have any security for this situation. Photo: provided by the BBC
Isabel
Isabel * was 19 when she said she was a victim of Westwood’s alleged predatory behavior in 2010. He was 53 at the time. The university graduate describes that she wants to pursue a career in music – she grew up in the Midlands, sings gospel and writes her own songs.
When she found out that Westwood was DJing at a nightclub in her hometown in 2010, she said she hoped to get her music in his hands. “At the time, he was the main gatekeeper for access to what I had to do,” she said.
Embedding history tips
She told the Guardian and the BBC that they had put together a demo CD with her contact details inside and said she had gone to a nightclub backed by her best friend and stepmother.
Isabel says that they managed to give the CD to the DJ, who to her excitement called her the next day and offered her a meeting in London. “We thought it was a really good lead at the moment,” she said. He wants to act quickly on this issue.
She says that a few days later she took the train to London for an afternoon meeting and met Westwood at Oxford Circus, where he took her in his car. Isabel says her “complete guess” is that they’re going somewhere to talk about her music. “The phone call was the only interaction we had before,” she said. There was nothing flirtatious or romantic about the nature of the conversation.
But she says that when the trip lasted longer than she expected and her surroundings became unfamiliar, she began to worry. “We got in the car. He did the least amount of little talk. I can say that he was not particularly interested in music, “she said.
Isabel says she looked away from him, but then claims she turned to find Westwood unbuttoning his pants and revealing himself.
“I didn’t actually see him unbutton his pants. What warned me about the fact that he was exposing himself was the fact that he actually patted me to turn to look. I looked and saw and said to myself, “Oh, no, oh, no, like, oh, God,” she says.
Isabel says she felt scared, but she couldn’t get out of the situation. She says they arrived at an apartment she believes is his, where he offered her a drink, which she refused.
It was in this apartment, which Isabel says was strewn with recordings, that she claimed to have been the victim of a second episode of opportunistic and predatory sexual behavior.
She claims that when Westwood returned from another room, he was naked.
“Then I noticed that he had a condom and he took it off [from the packet] and started putting it on, ”she says, adding that she recognized the condom from a promotion that Westwood made with the Durex brand – which he promoted at events across the country.
“I remember the package because it had this slogan on it. They had his face on the other side, “she said. “I remember throwing it away. I remember the fact that it was yellow. For example, I remember this very vividly, because I remember that then my brain also started to shut down. “
She says Westwood initiated the sex, and although she did not express her concerns, she was “frozen.”
“I didn’t have any security for this situation,” she said. “Everything is very reactive … because it’s just happening. And the shock factor is so overwhelming that it somehow disorients the rest of your way of thinking. It’s like you’re stunned. “
Isabel says Westwood then left the room. When he returned, she was holding her bag on her lap to show that she wanted to leave, and he took her to the station.
She says that when he left her, he tried to give her one of his mix CDs, but she refused.
Isabel says she felt “stupid” while traveling by train home. “I remember feeling so worried. It’s so sad. I’m really ashamed of myself and I’m bad. “
She says she remembers receiving a text message from a friend who was waiting to hear how the meeting went.
“I did not say what happened, but I sent an SMS to inform her that we had not listened, it did not happen. We didn’t listen to my music – it hasn’t disappeared like that. “
Isabel’s stepmother told the BBC and the Guardian that the whole family was excited about Isabel’s meeting with the DJ, hoping for a breakthrough in her career. But she knew instinctively that something was “wrong” when her stepdaughter didn’t want to talk about the meeting.
But she says that after hearing Isabel’s story, she felt guilty for not accompanying her – and says she cried when Isabel revealed that her silence was partly due to fear that her family would be disappointed by her.
Like others interviewed by the Guardian and the BBC, Isabelle said she found out in 2020 about allegations made by women on social media about Westwood’s misconduct.
Isabel says she is now telling her story because she thought what happened to her was an abuse of the DJ’s position.
“It’s a privilege to be able to do what you love as a job, and it’s a privilege to be given a platform to do it,” she said. “So it’s a mass violation when you abuse it.”
Westwood flatly refused to act in the manner described by Isabel.
Pamela
Pamela’s story * shares similarities with Isabel’s. Now in her 40s, Pamela was 20 when she says she first met the DJ through friends. It was 2000 and she was active on the youth rap scene, working with ambitious young musicians. The DJ – then in his 40s – wanted to reach out to younger audiences and asked them to work with him, she said.
She says he reassured her mother on the phone and Pamela traveled to London to meet with him for work experience. But when Westwood picked her up from King’s Cross Station in a large American-style car, he soon began touching her legs and face while driving, she said.
She says that while she withdrew her hand, he did not concentrate on the road and drove chaotically. A policeman on a motorcycle stopped by the car and knocked on the passenger’s window. Pamela says she sat in silence …
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