They declined interview requests from the media, including my own attempts to find out their side of the story, explaining via their publicist that they had been advised by their lawyers not to talk about the ongoing lawsuit. In fact, they practically disappeared from the limelight, taking a hiatus from their (normally very active) social media accounts. However, other than the op-ed and their first single as a duo-the not-so-subtly-titled " Say Goodbye," where the girls sing, "Read my lips and shut my face/Maybe you're the one to blame… The truth is going to find you"-the Yousafs refrained from commenting further on the breakup.
In December 2014, Jahan penned an op-ed in response to Deadmau5's tweet, writing, "It's almost as if being the female in the group, it's assumed that you are purely there as a puppet and completely void of any musical abilities, creativity, or vision… I am asking for everyone to think about girls who are looking at this public reaction who might now be discouraged to pursue an authentic place in a male-dominated industry."Ĭalling Bullshit on the Sexist Reactions to Krewella's Legal Problems In the transcript from his lawsuit, Trindl admitted he drank to deal with the pressure of success, and accused the sisters of not being supportive of his sobriety following an earlier stint in rehab in 2013, stating that they "didn't like the new, sober Kris" and "thought he was depressed." Trindl also claimed that the girls only wanted him to check into a facility so so they could establish themselves as a duo, squeeze him out of the group, and make more money for themselves going forward. Per court documents THUMP obtained, Trindl refused to enter a treatment program, and in September 2014, he sued Jahan and Yasmine for $5 million, alleging that he'd been unfairly removed from the group and cut out of his equal share of their future revenue.
According to Jahan and Yasmine's countersuit, this final straw prompted them to stage an intervention in an attempt to curb a drinking problem they said Trindl had developed in tandem with the band's rising profile. Krewella's fiery rise sputtered out in March 2014, when Trindl missed a flight to headline at Electric Daisy Carnival in Mexico City. They were also one of the few female-fronted acts in a male-dominated scene-like Nervo, but more raw. At a time when main stages were dominated by Tiesto, Hardwell, Martin Garrix, Zedd, Avicii, and Disclosure, the Yousafs-who proudly talk about growing up in a Muslim family with a Pakistani father-felt like refreshing outlier next to the brigade of bland white men in black V-necks. Their 2013 debut album, Get Wet-which mixed hardstyle, electro, and dubstep with stadium rock, and featured guests like Blink-182's Travis Barker and Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump-reached #1 on Billboard's US Dance charts. It perfectly sums up their visual brand: dirty, playful, sexy, unstoppable.Īfter winning an International Dance Music Award in 2012 for "Best Breakthrough Artist," the trio headlined major festivals like Ultra, Electric Daisy Carnival, and Stereosonic. The video for one of their early hits, " Alive,"-which currently has 53 million views on YouTube-follows a group of hot teens hooking up amidst an apocalyptic demolition derby. Together, they developed a trademark sound that hijacks every nerve in your body and blasts you into a confetti cannon of mindless euphoria: sweet and synthetic pop hooks floating over chainsaw basslines that sound like Transformers kicking each other in the testicles. The Yousafs acted as the group's vocalists and songwriters, while Trindl produced the beats. (Trindl and Jahan also dated from 2006 to 2011.)īack in 2012, Jahan, Yasmine and Kris were the new faces of the burgeoning EDM movement-charismatic poster kids for rolling face to nasty dubstep drops, thrashing your wet hair against thousands of sweaty strangers, and giving in to every impulse. Learning to laugh at themselves hasn't always been easy for Jahan and Yasmine, who for the last two years have been subject to intense online scrutiny due to a highly publicized-and very ugly-legal battle with former bandmate Kris "Rainman" Trindl, who left the group in 2014. Without a hint of self-consciousness, she starts singing sweetly, "Oh babe, meet me in Tompkins Square Park…" Jahan, whose angular cheekbones stands in contrast to Yasmine's baby-faced features, joins in with a sardonic grin: "I wanna hold you in the dark…" Clutching each other's elbows, the sisters double forward in contagious laughter. "Tompkins Square Park! It's like the Mumford and Sons song!" she says, pointing at a metal placard with a hand covered in snaking tattoos, her brown eyes wide with childlike glee.