Who is Melissa Schuman, the woman who accused Nick Carter of rape?

In a personal blog post earlier this month, 33-year-old Melissa Schuman accused former Backstreet Boy Nick Carter of raping her at his home in 2004 when she was then 18. Schuman is best known for her time as a teen pop singer in the girl group Dream.

According to Schuman, Carter invited her over to his home while the two were filming a movie together. Although she brought her roommate along for the visit, Carter and Schuman ended up alone together in the bathroom. Schuman alleges that Carter forcibly performed oral sex on her, then demanded she reciprocate. He then took her into his bedroom, and — despite repeatedly stating she was a virgin and waiting until marriage to have sex — Schuman claims Carter raped her.

After the traumatic experience, and having no choice but to interact with Carter professionally, Schuman said she rapidly lost interest in pursuing a music career.

Schuman left Dream and had plans to start a solo career, but the album and single were scrapped. She briefly was a member of the group Lady Phoenix, but they disbanded before a single could materialize.

In 2016, Dream did a short reunion tour with other groups from the era. Despite positive feedback from fans, a proposed album did not appear. Schuman also starred in the web series Actresses from 2015-2016.

In her blog, Schuman says she was inspired to step forward and share her story after a report about Carter from October 2017. In the story, a former fan alleged that Carter sexually assaulted her at a house party. Schuman said she felt it was her obligation to speak up about her own experiences with the singer.

Nick Carter has since denied all allegations.

Coming forward about such a terrible experience is never easy. We applaud Melissa Schuman for her bravery and eloquence, and stand with all victims of sexual violence.