Marcus Mumford has revealed that he experienced sexual abuse as a child in a new interview.
The singer and songwriter has been the frontman of folk-rock group Mumford & Sons since the band’s inception in 2007.
As he prepares to release solo music, the musician spoke about the inspiration behind his new work.
Speaking to GQ Hype about a forthcoming song named “Cannibal”, Mumford explained that the track was how his mother learned about traumatic experiences that occurred when he was six.
“Like lots of people – and I’m learning more and more about this as we go and as I play it to people – I was sexually abused as a child,” he said.
“Not by family and not in the church, which might be some people’s assumption. But I hadn’t told anyone about it for 30 years.”
According to the publication, the song begins with the lyrics: “I can still taste you and I hate it / That wasn’t a choice in the mind of a child and you knew it.”
After playing the song to his mother, Mumford says it took some days before she asked what the song was about.
“I was like, ‘Yeah, it’s about the abuse thing.’ She was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ So once we get through the trauma of that moment for her, as a mother, hearing that and her wanting to protect and help and all that stuff, it’s objectively f***ing hilarious to tell your mom about your abuse in a f***ing song, of all things.”
Later in the discussion, he explained that the track “had to” be the first one on his new record, as it was his way of not apologising for what he’d been through.
Mumford also said that the experience of “a string of really unusual, unhealthy sexual experiences at a really early age” resulted in him dealing with other life occurrences in an “imbalanced way” as he got older.
If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here.
