Michael Milosh, the musician known for his work as Rhye, has issued a statement denying the sexual abuse and grooming accusations levied by his ex-wife, Alexa Nikolas.
In a statement provided to SPIN, Milosh said that Nikolas’ “false claims made by my former wife had been so hurtful and shocking” and that he’s been an outspoken advocate for women to speak out and be heard.
Milosh says that the accusations have surfaced as he has stopped giving Nikolas financial support following their divorce.
“Like all marriages we had our difficulties and tempted to weather them together as best we could. Ultimately, despite our best efforts, we agreed to divorce. I loved her very much and we shared many special years before our marriage ended. I have always wished her nothing but the best and continued to support her financially even after I was no longer required to under our divorce agreement. Eventually, I stopped paying in response, Alexa has resorted to character assassination,” he said.
He went on to call Nikolas’ lengthy Instagram posts “it’s simply a piece of revisionist fiction” and characterized it as “defamation.”
“I’ve tried to be supportive and help out when repeatedly asked but at a certain point, I was not able to provide any additional financial support things seemed to have taken an abrupt change thereafter. Now I am being hit with horrific and spiteful lies,” he said.”
On Monday, in a series of Instagram posts, Nikolas accused Milosh of grooming her when they first met and of sexually abusing her. On Tuesday, Nikolas shared on Instagram that others have come forward after she shared her story.
Nikolas added an additional Instagram post yesterday (March 16) which indicated other women had come forward.
View this post on Instagram
Read Milosh’s full statement below:
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always strongly supported women and their right to speak out and be heard.
That is why the false claims made by my former wife had been so hurtful and shocking to me. Alexa and I were married for nearly seven years. Like all marriages we had our difficulties and [sic] tempted to weather them together as best we could. Ultimately, despite our best efforts, we agreed to divorce. I loved her very much and we shared many special years before our marriage ended. I have always wished her nothing but the best and continued to support her financially even after I was no longer required to under our divorce agreement. Eventually, I stopped paying [sic] in response, Alexa has resorted to character assassination.
However, regarding my ex-wife’s recent Instagram post and its listed as serious and demonstratable untrue accusations, it’s simply a piece of revisionist fiction. These are absurd and outrageous false claims about me that a media outlet has published and repeated falsehoods are beyond irresponsible — it’s defamatory.
I can only stay the unvarnished truth. Alexa came to Berlin several months after her 18th birthday and we spent a week hanging out enjoying the city taking photographs that she eventually used as her IMDb listing headshot and modeling photos. We fell in love. I visited the following fall and she lived with me in Berlin the following summer but ultimately said she couldn’t live in Germany as her career and life were based in Los Angeles so I moved to Los Angeles for love, for her, for us. This is a story that has been documented extensively around the release of my first record.
Our art photography collaborations continued before and during our marriage, we had a Gallery exhibition of the photos I took of Alexa and she was proudly featured on the cover of my album.
I’ve done many interviews about my songs the lyrics and what inspired them many about love relationships and sensuality.
My life is a touring musician and the pressures of travel and life on the road ultimately took its toll on our marriage and I’m sorry she came to feel my professional life has had a negative impact on her and our life together. Alexa had her own demons and I did my best to be a good husband in trying to overcome them. In the end, we could not help each other.
We were married for nearly seven years before the divorce decree was finalized.
We filed for divorce using a mediator who arrived at a fair settlement and processes the documents. Neither of us engaged individual divorce attorneys and there is no courtroom drama. Even after all of my alimony obligations, I continued to send money when she said she needed it for car repairs, moving deposits, back taxes, creative projects at her many requests.
I’ve tried to be supportive and help out when repeatedly asked but at a certain point, I was not able to provide any additional financial support things seemed to have taken an abrupt change thereafter. Now I am being hit with horrific and spiteful lies.
I reiterate that these accusations are outrageously false and the manipulated stories provably untrue. I’m fully prepared to cooperate with any independent investigation into these false claims and look forward to being cleared of all the shameless mirrors.
