Bittenbender Drops off Vulvodynia Tour; Prusent Back on Vocals

It’s been a doozy of a few days for Vulvodynia. The South African deathcore band have been on the road, only to hit a large considerable snag when it comes to their new vocalist Zion Bittenbender. Just a few days ago he was accused of sexual assault and misconduct, obviously forcing the band to try and take some sort of action in regards to how they’re planning on moving forward. Their solution as of now involves Bittenbender exiting the tour, and guitarist Lwandile Prusent taking over that vocal position again.

“Again,” because Prusent was the one who handled vocals before Bittenbender even joined the band, back when their original vocalist Duncan Bentley was kicked out following his involvement in a violent altercation. At least he already knows what to do.

Both parties (Vulvodynia and Bittenbender) released initial, separate statements upon the allegations breaking, and the band has now released another one about this current decision:

Official Statement from Vulvodynia

“Following the recent Allegations circulating online involving our vocalist, Zion Bittenbender, we want to provide an update regarding our touring plans.

“After careful discussion, Zion will be returning home from our current tour in Asia to focus on addressing these matters through the appropriate legal channels. Handling this responsibly would be extremely difficult while continuing to tour internationally, so this decision has been made in everyone’s best interests.

“Lwandile Prusent, who originally fronted Vulvodynia and has since been performing on guitar, will resume vocal duties for the remained of 2025 to ensure our commitments are fulfilled.

“We appreciate everyone’s understanding and support while this situation is handled properly and respectfully.”

Good on them for taking immediate action again but, at this point, they might as well just let Prusent stay at the helm.