Press Photo Credit: Sophie Buckley
LEX GIBBON TELLS THE STORY OF EXPERIENCING SEXUAL HARASSMENT ON
PUBLIC TRANSPORT WITH THE NEW SINGLE ‘AUDACITY’ – LISTEN HERE
RAISING AWARENESS FOR THE TEXT 61016 SERVICE
British Transport Police releases new statistics that suggest sexual harassment is underreported by teenage girls.
Crime statistics released today show that:
- In 2022, 663 teenage girls reported sexual offences or harassment to British Transport Police.
- In 2023, this rose to 886 reports, at 25% increase.
“Was trying to tell you no with my eyes
But guess you just couldn’t take the hint
Bad things happen when girls aren’t nice
Don’t wanna end up like them” – Lex Gibbon
“Lex inspires us to embrace our uniqueness.” – Wonderland
“Challenging stereotypes of pop.” – Notion
“As an advocate for mental health awareness, body positivity, and anti-bullying, she uses her music to help inspire others and help them believe they can achieve anything they set their minds to.” – The Honey POP
Always eager to share her own experiences through music, Lex Gibbon’s instantly relatable songs and girl-next-door personality have attracted a growing following (100,000 across social media) as well as Radio 1 Future Pop airplay from Mollie King. While those stories are always immensely personal – from body confidence issues to social anxieties – her new single ‘Audacity’ is her most important topic to date.
‘Audacity’ is unfortunately a story that will be familiar to women of all ages and backgrounds: an ordinary train journey on a Wednesday night in which Lex is accosted and followed by a random man. Not only are his advances intimidating and unwanted, but he has the audacity to persist even when Lex makes it clear how uncomfortable the situation is. The single and her vocals – with precisely delivered lyrics set to sparse instrumentation – reflects the vulnerability she felt in the moment.
Lex later discovered that the Text 61016 service exists. An initiative run by British Transport Police, Text 61016 provides a discreet method to report any behaviour that makes you feel uncomfortable or to report an incident that you may witness. Always dial 999 in an emergency. More information on Text 61016 is available here: https://www.btp.police.uk/police-forces/british-transport-police/areas/campaigns/61016-text-service/
Lex Gibbon said:
“I was followed through an underground train station by a man who made me feel extremely unsafe, scared and vulnerable.
“At the time I had no idea that text 61016 existed. I believe it’s really important to help women feel safer on public transport, so when I wrote ‘Audacity’ about my experience I felt it could really raise awareness for the initiative.
“I’ve now reported and spent a day with British Transport Police, and I’ve seen how seriously they take sexual harassment.
“If someone does this to me again, I’ll be texting it in. Please save 61016 in your phone and use it to report this sort of creepy behaviour.”
Lex wrote the song with Nina Sundstrom (Hannah Grace) and it was produced by the duo INK who consist of Marie White and Emmie Spence.
Bullying in childhood led to mental health issues as Lex grew up, but somehow she overcame those challenges to become the first curve teen model to walk at the London, Paris, New York and Los Angeles fashion weeks. Collaborations soon followed with brands such as Gymshark, Next, St Tropez, River Island and Pepe Jeans, but Lex felt that sharing her real life experiences through music would be a really powerful way to help guide other young people through their troubles. Also supported by BBC Introducing, a creative collaboration with Anne-Marie, and an array of new artist showcases, Lex Gibbon’s inspiring music is best represented by last year’s forthright and conversational ‘I’ve Got Something To Say’ EP.
Follow Lex Gibbon:
Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube | TikTok | Instagram | Facebook | Website
