Bethany Cosentino, the frontwoman of L.A. band Best Coast, has called on Casey Wasserman — the founder and CEO of her agency, Wasserman Music — to step down over his appearance in the Epstein files.
In an open letter posted to Instagram on Thursday night, Cosentino — who has been represented by Wasserman since its expansion into music in 2021 — pointed out Wasserman’s 2003 correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell, who was found guilty of child sex trafficking in connection to Epstein and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022.
“As an artist represented by Wasserman, I did not consent to having my name or my career tied to someone with this kind of association to exploitation,” she wrote. “Staying quiet isn’t something I can do in good conscience — especially in a moment when men in power are so often protected, excused, or allowed to move on without consequence. Pretending this isn’t a big deal is not an option for me.”
Wasserman’s emails to Maxwell were flirtatious in nature — with one email asking, “So, what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?” — but did not point to any wrongdoing. After the emails came to light earlier this week, Wasserman — who is also the chairman of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics committee — issued an apology.
“I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light,” Wasserman said. “I never had a personal or business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. As is well documented, I went on a humanitarian trip as part of a delegation with the Clinton Foundation in 2002 on the Epstein plane. I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them.”
However, Cosentino said that this is not enough. “Regret without accountability is just damage control — an attempt to move on while the rest of us are expected to sit with the discomfort of our careers being publicly tied to him,” she wrote. “Artists are tired of swallowing scandals like this. We are tired of learning, over and over, that men who control access, resources, money and so-called safety in our industry are given endless grace. We are tired of being asked to treat proximity to something horrific as an unfortunate situation we should simply move past — especially when the person involved still holds all the power. And we are tired of watching harm minimized or brushed off as ‘a long time ago,’ while the impact of that harm is still very real, especially for women and survivors of sexual assault.”
Cosentino said that she has asked to remove her and Best Coast’s name from the Wasserman Music website and demanded for him to step down and for the business to change its name. Representatives for Wasserman and Wasserman Music did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment on Cosentino’s letter.
“I’m speaking out because pretending this is normal isn’t normal,” she continued. “Because people in power can’t keep skating by. And because the artists keeping the lights on at Wasserman deserve support, not to be ignored while men in power are protected. It is important for us as artists to remember: these people work for us, not the other way around.”
L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who is on the 2028 Olympics committee, has also called for Wasserman to resign from his position as chairman. “Having him represent us on the world stage distracts focus from our athletes and the enormous effort needed to prepare for 2028,” she told the L.A. Times.
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