Fans of Why Don’t We are rallying behind the members of the pop group while its managers are embroiled in a legal battle that includes allegations of “nightmarish behaviour.”
The hashtags “#FreeWDW and #JusticeForWhyDontWe started showing up on social media along with messages of support.
On Monday, Canadian singer Scott Helman weighed in. “When I met @whydontwemusic they were nothing but lovely, and their manager David was a huge a**hole. Me and a friend first-hand witnessed what seemed to be a SUPER abusive conversation between him and the band,” he tweeted. “I stand for artist rights whenever possible, and I’m hoping that however this conflict gets resolved, it’s in the best interest of those 5 talented dudes.”
David Loeffler and Randy Phillips are former business partners whose companies Signature Entertainment and PDM III hold exclusive rights to “direct and control” WDW and the solo careers of its members Jack Avery, Corbyn Besson, Zach Herron, Jonah Marais and Daniel Seavey. The companies – in which the five singers have shares – also own the group’s music, masters and revenue streams.
The members of WDW are considered salaried employees under the terms of their agreements with Signature Entertainment and PDM III.
On Aug. 17, Loeffler filed a lawsuit in Florida against Phillips for tortious interference with a business relationship because the members of WDW refuse to sign a record deal with Atlantic unless Phillips is declared its lone manager. Loeffler is also suing the members of WDW for anticipatory breach of contract.
According to the lawsuit, Signature Entertainment has a contract with Sessions Live but WDW have “failed to appear as scheduled for appearances pursuant to the contract with Sessions, thus causing the loss of revenues and preparation costs related to those appearances.”
Phillips filed a lawsuit against Loeffler on Aug. 26 in California claiming Loeffler did not honour an agreement to allow him to step back into the role of manager in 2020 after a three-year hiatus. Phillips is seeking to have the court expel Loeffler from PDM III.
Phillips’ lawsuit alleges Loeffler was abusive to members of WDW while living with them in a home rented for them to develop music together. It claims Loeffler displayed “nightmarish behaviour” that included “verbal abuse, screaming at them at the top of his lungs, sometimes for 10-20 minutes.”
Loeffler is accused of forcing WDW members "to share two small bedrooms, even though the house had a spare, unused bedroom” and allegedly monitored “almost every movement they made” and set an alarm every night “which they did not know the code to, to make sure they did not leave.” The young men were not allowed friends or visitors and were not properly fed, the lawsuit claims.
Phillips also accuses Loeffler of withholding a $1 million U.S. publishing advance intended for the members of WDW during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a statement to Billboard, which was first to report on the drama, Loeffler said Phillips’ lawsuit is “without merit and in retaliation for the suit we filed against him.”
FROM 2018: Watch Hanging With... Why Don't We
(Contrary to the first published version of the Billboard article, the members of WDW are aged between 20 and 23.)
A lawyer representing the group members said in a statement that they are siding with Phillips. “After years of mental and financial abuse at the hands of Dave Loeffler and his associates, Randy Phillips seeks to salvage a deteriorating relationship with rising stars Why Don’t We … with the production companies co-owned by Phillips … For unknown motives, other than perhaps professional jealousy, Loeffler has attempted to interfere with Phillips's role as primary manager of these artists.”
None of the allegations in either lawsuit have been tested in a court.
Why Don't We's sophomore album The Good Ones and the Bad Ones debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart but then plummeted 147 spots in its second week.