Ebony, a finalist from the Star Academy, has announced she will no longer perform at the Delta Festival in Marseille following accusations of sexual violence leveled against the festival’s co-founder, Olivier Ledot. According to her statement shared on Instagram on Thursday, July 23, the singer stated that “making party in this context would be contrary to (my) convictions,” joining a wave of artist dropouts that includes Mosimann, Adèle Castillon, Acid Arab, Kungs, and Miki.
The growing boycott stems from public testimonies shared by former collaborators and volunteers accusing Ledot of sexual assault. While some scheduled acts have chosen to remain on the lineup—such as DJ Yann Muller, who announced via Brut that his fee will be donated to charity—the artist exodus has placed heavy pressure on the four-day event, which had projected an attendance of 150,000 festival-goers across its three-day run on the Prado beaches.
Artist Withdrawals and Festival Response
In response to the mounting public backlash, festival organizers removed Olivier Ledot from operational management and established an internal commission of inquiry. However, withdrawing artists argue that administrative distancing does not go far enough. Ebony stated that even with these internal measures enacted by the organization, her participation could be perceived as normalizing severe misconduct. She explicitly directed sympathy toward the festival’s volunteers and technical crews, whom she called collateral victims of the crisis.
Organizers maintain that the Delta Festival will proceed as scheduled from July 23 to July 26. In an effort to salvage public trust and curb ticket cancellations, management announced via Instagram that all potential profits generated from this year’s edition will be donated directly to associations combatting sexist and sexual violence.
Legal Status and Denials
Olivier Ledot has strongly denied all allegations against him. Through a right-of-reply statement released to MarsActu, he characterized the claims as a deliberate attempt to damage his reputation and destabilize the festival. According to reporting from Libération citing confirmation from the Marseille public prosecutor’s office, no formal criminal complaints had been filed against Ledot as of the initial announcements.
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