In December 2018, former Mac DeMarco band member Jon Lent was arrested for sexual assault charges. As of today, he’s been convicted of the charges and sentenced to two years minus one day in provincial jail. According to Stereogum, the woman involved in the allegations contacted Pitchfork about the conviction.

“I had really loved Mac DeMarco for a long time before I met Jon, and that was the reason why I ever met him, because I was following all the people from the band on Instagram,” she said in an email. “It has been almost six months since Jon was convicted and neither Jon nor Mac have said anything to address the situation. I now know that I was wrong to believe that legal justice also means accountability.”

A representative for DeMarco said he did not learn of the allegations until April 2021, after which Lent was immediately removed from the band. The artist has stood for women’s rights in the past, being part of the lineup for the Village of Love Planned Parenthood Benefit. 

In December 2020, DeMarco made an appearance in The Neighbourhood’s video for “Stargazing” alongside Blake Griffin, Lana Del Rey and more. He made another appearance in a 2020 music video, Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus’ video for “Shadowbanned.” The Canadian singer-songwriter has also had experience in directing videos, such as Iggy Pop’s video for “Sonali.” 

Photo Credit: Owen Ela