Slowthai Found Not Guilty In Rape Case

Slowthai has been found not guilty of allegedly raping two women at a house party following a concert in Oxford, in September 2021. After 10 hours of deliberation, the jury decided against convicting him and his co-defendant, Alex Blake-Walker of three counts of rape. According to The Guardian, Slowthai broke into tears after they read the verdict.

The rapper’s defense attorney, Patrick Gibbs KC, said in his closing statements that Slowthai “wasn’t everybody’s stereotype of a rapper”, but instead a “thoughtful” and “modest” man who “throws himself, sometimes recklessly, into life.” He added: “Even if he [Mr Frampton] is acquitted, it [the allegations] will not leave him,” suggesting “he’ll be canceled for the rest of time.”

As for the allegation, the two women say Slowthai and Blake-Walker met them before the show and provided them with VIP tickets. Afterward, they joined the two on their tour bus before eventually going to one of the women’s houses. Prosecutor Heather Stangoe further alleged that Slowthai and Blake-Walker raped the two women on the roof and gave each other high-fives as it happened. She also claimed the women’s friends realized what was happening and broke it up. The two women went to the police that same night. Judge Ian Pringle said during the trial that the case was a “question of consent” and that there was “no stereotype for a perpetrator or victim of rape.”

Slowthai broke onto the mainstream scene in 2019 with the release of his critically acclaimed album, Nothing Great About Britain. He followed that up with Tyron in 2021 before most recently releasing Ugly in 2023. He earned a Grammy nomination for Best Dance Recording in 2021 for “My High” with Disclosure and Aminé.