Sonic Mania Opening Composer Accused Of Grooming And Abuse

Kevin Villecco, one of the two composers who created the opening music for Sonic Mania, has been accused of grooming and abusing his ex-wife. Fellow composer Evelyn Rivera shared her allegations in a Dropbox document, saying she was 15 at the time she and Villecco started their relationship in 2015, while he was 24.

In the document, Rivera shares screenshots of apparent conversations between her and Villecco, showing that he was aware that she was underage when they started talking. Regardless, he allegedly coerced her into leaving her family to live with him, alienating her from her family and friends, and abusing her.

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Villecco is best known for being part of the musical duo Hyper Potions. They composed the track "Friends", which was used in both Sonic Mania's opening cinematic, and the 2020 Sonic the Hedgehog movie. They had also worked on tracks that appeared in Sonic Boom, Team Sonic Racing, and promotional material for Sonic Origins.

However, he is now at the centre of abuse allegations. Rivera starts her account of events from the beginning, first explaining how she and Villecco got together when she was underage.

"Kevin would then go on to tell me that he wanted to marry me, and told me that he had sexual dreams about me," says Rivera. "It made me uncomfortable, but I really believed that he loved me, so in my mind, it couldn’t have been wrong."

Rivera then says that her mother found out about the relationship and tried to separate them.

"She had contacted the police and tried to get law enforcement involved, but they didn’t do anything," Rivera alleges. "We started messaging each other using secret accounts and Snapchats, and he would encourage me to delete my messages after."

Once Rivera was 17, she says she and Villecco quickly moved in together. When they got married, she was 18 and he was 27. She says this is when the abuse got worse, accusing Villecco of sexual assault and coercive behaviour. Rivera also alleges that Villecco kept her from speaking with friends and family.

Now divorced, Rivera says she is sharing these allegations to help others spot the signs of grooming earlier on in a relationship.

Villecco's co-composer at Hyper Potions, Ian Tsuchiura, was quick to take action, announcing that Villecco has been removed from the music group.

"I don't condone or support any of Kevin's past behaviour," says Tsuchiura. "We have spoken, and I have explicitly stated that I will not defend him on this matter. We will not be working together in the future in any capacity."

Villecco has not publicly commented on the allegations at the time of writing.

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