October 8th 2024.
Deryck Whibley, the 44-year-old lead singer of the band Sum 41, recently opened up about his experiences with alleged abuse from his former manager, Greig Nori. In his candid new memoir, Walking Disaster: My Life Through Heaven and Hell, Whibley shares the details of the sexual abuse he endured at the hands of Nori, who was also his mentor, starting from when he was just 16 years old.
Nori, who was previously the frontman of Treble Charger, became Sum 41's first manager and helped them improve their songwriting skills and record demos. According to Nori's official website, he was the driving force behind the band. However, Whibley's account tells a different story of alleged grooming, sexual and verbal abuse, which reportedly began when he was 16 and Nori was 34.
Whibley formed Sum 41 in 1996 and soon after, Nori became heavily involved with the band. Whibley recalls Nori establishing total control over the group in the early days, claiming that he was the only person they could trust. However, as their relationship progressed, Whibley alleges that Nori began to sexually and verbally abuse him, using tactics like pitting band members against each other.
One particular incident shared in the book details an encounter where Nori allegedly invited an 18-year-old Whibley into a bathroom stall, gave him ecstasy, and then passionately kissed him. Whibley was left stunned and confused, as Nori reportedly told him that their relationship was special and that he had never felt same-sex attraction before. He even tried to justify their relationship by mentioning that many of Whibley's rock idols were queer.
As the band started touring, their relationship grew more distant. It wasn't until Whibley started dating Avril Lavigne that he confided in someone for the first time. Lavigne was the first person to tell him that he had been sexually assaulted. Although the sexual advances reportedly stopped after a mutual friend intervened, the psychological and verbal abuse continued.
Whibley eventually mustered the courage to confront Nori and convinced the rest of the band to oust him in 2005. According to Whibley, Nori still had control over him and the rest of the band, and it was a relief to finally cut ties with him. However, Whibley never spoke to any of the former or current band members about the abuse, and he also never contacted Nori, as he didn't feel like he owed him anything.
In a recent interview, Whibley admitted that he had avoided confronting the abuse for so long because he didn't want to have "victim issues." He is still in the early stages of processing the manipulative behavior he experienced and believes that readers may see it as abuse, but he sees it as "some s***y thing [he] went through."
Sum 41 is currently on a farewell world tour, and their last show will be in Toronto, Ontario on January 30, 2025. The band announced their split in May 2023 after 27 years together, expressing their gratitude to their fans for their support. Whibley also shared his desire to reconnect with former band member Jon Marshall, who left the group in 1997 without any contact.
The Agency has reached out to Greig Nori for comment on the allegations. If you have a celebrity story to share, please email us, call us, or visit our Submit Stuff page. We would love to hear from you.
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