Shortly after Danity Kane revealed that they have broken up (again), Dawn Richard penned an open letter to her fans.
The letter is in response to the reports that she punched Aubrey O’Day after a recording session, a report she previously called “exaggerated lies and false accusations.”
“I am sorry to everyone that this news has to come out. You’re worth more. Certain choices were made that I am not proud of. However, I will not be disrespected. Once again, I am sorry to the fans as this should have been handled privately not publicly,” Richard wrote on Saturday (August 9).
The letter continued, “I continued to work with both parties to try to release the album even when the original story was leaked without anyone being consulted. I have been unable to release my statement via Danity Kane social media because my access to all Danity Kane social media pages has been blocked by DK members. This forces me to make my statement on my personal page. This could have all been handled privately; however, certain parties chose to make this public before it could be rectified. I am not justifying my actions. I am saying this was all done before any changes or conversations could even be had.”
In a statement released on Friday (August 8), O’Day alleged that Richard “punched me in the back of my head while I was speaking to another associate. To be clear, she was not physically engaged or threatened prior to her attack on me. This is the same information I provided to the police, and witnesses also corroborated this account of the incident. I cannot condone or excuse any form of physical violence, particularly at the hands of someone I considered family. Disagreements happen. But a war of words and ideas should never end in physical aggression.”
The incident allegedly took place during a group meeting. O’Day and Shannon Bex had a message for the DK fans in that same statement. “We know it must be devastating for our fans to have spent the last twelve months supporting our every move, and for that we cannot apologize enough. We share your frustration and anger!…We wish, more than anything, that our time, our team’s time, and most importantly your time as fans, was not taken for granted and carelessly disregarded. If this ending was in our control, please understand that we would have done everything in our power to move things forward.”
Danity Kane reunited as a foursome in 2013 after breaking up for the first time in 2009.