Lady of the House founder to “take time away” from role following bullying and harassment accusations

Update 27/10/2022: This story has been updated to include Laila McKenzie's statement  

Laila McKenzie, co-founder of collective and record label Lady of the House (LOTH), is set to “take time away” from her role following accusations of alleged bullying, gaslighting, and harassment.

The accusations first surfaced last Tuesday (18th October) when DJ duo Black Girl / White Girl shared a statement on Twitter alleging “wildly unacceptable and unethical” behaviour from McKenzie. The pair in turn cancelled their set at A Lady Of The House party at Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) on 19th October.

“Pulling out of this show was a decision we had to make because of the way we’ve been treated by Laila," they wrote. They explained that they "refuse to endorse an organization or individual who, while publicly profiles themselves as wanting to advance women and non-binary people in music, behaves in a manner that is 100% at odds with that goal behind closed doors", adding that they were "cutting all ties with LOTH".

Laila McKenzie has since responded to these reports, saying in a statement that she "wholly reject(s) the allegations made" and that she "was shocked and saddened by [Black Girl, White Girl's] subsequent public statement and personal attack on my character."

She wrote: "I am aware of allegations made on social media about my behaviour. These began with a statement made by the artists Black Girl White Girl (‘BGWG’). BGWG was recently booked by Lady of the House for an event. The relationship regrettably broke down over a commercial issue, the date for payment of a deposit – and not for any other reason."

She added that "key members of Lady of the House Advisory Board have conducted a swift and thorough review of the written communications underlying the allegations made by BGWG, and have found no evidence of any wrongdoing." You can read McKenzie's full statement below. 

Lady of the House, which originated as a book celebrating house music’s pioneering women, also responded with a post on Instagram in which they accept Mckenzie's decision to take time out from the day-to-day management duties and "acknowledge the seriousness of the claims and the importance of the correct response".

"LOTH exists to champion underrepresented communities within club culture and the dance music industry, and is greatly saddened to hear of any negative impact on our larger efforts arising from this situation," the statement continues. "Our team is passionate about this cause, and is dismayed that this overarching mission is being undermined by unfounded accusations.

"As we explore all sides of this dispute, the LOTH team wholeheartedly condemns the threats of physical violence and other vile suggestions made against Laila or any of our members; we do not condone bullying in any shape or form whether privately in the workplace or in an open forum such as the press or social media," they wrote. You can read Lady Of The House's full statement below. 

Following Black Girl / White Girl’s accusations, another associate of LOTH, named Emma, also detailed her alleged experiences with Laila. “I was brought on board at LOTH by Laila as her Marketing Manager,” she told Mixmag. "She was constantly condescending, stressing that she has more experience than I do. She harassed me all hours of the day with endless calls and emails, and quite frankly, it was horrendous."

She continued: “I resigned after five days because she spoke to me as if I was totally worthless. When I sent my resignation email stating how I disliked the way she spoke to me and treated me, she said that if I was more experienced, she'd have been nicer... I would never speak to my team the way she spoke to me. In fact, I would never speak to anybody the way she spoke to me."

LOTH launched a new record label earlier this year, with the first four releases handled by BBC Radio 1’s Jaguar and Charlie Tee, Defected’s Sam Divine, and Brit Dance Act 2022 winner Becky Hill. 

Statement from LOTH Founder, Laila McKenzie

I am aware of allegations made on social media about my behaviour.

These began with a statement made by the artists Black Girl White Girl (‘BGWG’). BGWG was recently booked by Lady of the House for an event. The relationship regrettably broke down over a commercial issue, the date for payment of a deposit – and not for any other reason. I was shocked and saddened by their subsequent public statement and personal attack on my character.

Since then, several industry publications have republished the allegations without taking sufficient (or in many cases, any) steps to verify the truthfulness of them. I wholly reject the allegations made. Lady of the House takes any allegations of this sort extremely seriously. 

As such, key members of Lady of the House Advisory Board have conducted a swift and thorough review of the written communications underlying the allegations made by BGWG, and have found no evidence of any wrongdoing. 

The matter is now in the hands of my solicitors, Brett Wilson LLP, and therefore it would not be appropriate for me to comment further at this stage, other than to say that I intend to take all necessary steps to protect my reputation, and the reputation of Lady of the House, and to ensure that Lady of the House can continue championing and empowering women in the electronic music industry. 

I fully expect my reputation to be vindicated in due course. Lady of the House and I thank you for your ongoing support.