N.O.R.E. Sued for Sexual Assault

Note: This article contains descriptions of alleged sexual assault.

N.O.R.E. is facing allegations of sexual assault from former music executive Carmen Bryan, who has accused the Queens rapper and podcast host of forcibly digitally penetrating her in a Manhattan nightclub in 1999.

At the time, Bryan was working as the finance officer of Def Jam affiliate Rush Management, and shared a child with Nas. N.O.R.E., born Victor James Santiago Jr., was promoting his second album, Melvin Flynt – Da Hustler when he allegedly “physically overpowered” Bryan, forcing himself onto her in front of her friends and other club patrons, according to a lawsuit obtained by Pitchfork. Despite her pleas to stop, the assault only ended when bystanders “shouted” and “physically pulled him away.”

Crying uncontrollably, Bryan fled the club with her friends, but, according to the lawsuit, Santiago proceeded to follow her while making sexual comments and demanding, “Don’t you know who I am?” It was only in the illumination of streetlights that Santiago realized it was Bryan, the mother of Nas’s child. “Carm, I didn’t know it was you,” he allegedly said. “You’re always doing something different with your hair.”

In March, Bryan sent a pre-suit settlement to Santiago, hoping to resolve the issue and informing him that his “unlawful conduct” constituted “forcible touching, assault, disorderly conduct, sexual misconduct, and a violation of her civil rights.” Santiago reportedly claimed that he did not know Bryan.

“No woman signs up to be assaulted,” Heather Palmore, Bryan’s attorney, wrote in a statement to Pitchfork. “The assertion that an assault is excusable—or simply did not happen—because a perpetrator failed to recognize his victim strips women of their fundamental humanity. Ms. Bryan is coming forward not only to demand accountability for the lasting trauma and public humiliation inflicted upon her, but to challenge the culture of entitlement that treats women's bodies as collateral damage.”

Pitchfork has reached out to N.O.R.E.’s lawyer for comment.

If you or someone you know has been affected by inappropriate sexual behavior, we encourage you to reach out for support:

RAINN Hotline
http://www.rainn.org
1 800 656 HOPE (4673)

Crisis Text Line
http://www.facebook.com/crisistextline (chat support)
SMS: Text “HERE” to 741-741