"In the days leading up to the video's release, we're going to pretend we were hacked, share and delete confessional social media posts on the subject of our privacy, then try to 'get out in front of it' and sell the sex tape, fake a server crash, etc," the email said.
Today they've issued a statement saying "this was not designed to make money or sell records, but to explore the intersection of privacy, media, and celebrity".
But the damage was done as people took to social media to slam Yacht for pretending to be victims of a sex crime just to garner publicity.
The band addressed these issues in a statement released today.
"We never make light of victims of any form of sexual abuse. Frankly, it's disturbing to us that press outlets could make the incredibly irresponsible leap from 'celebrity sex tape', which is the cultural trope this project explicitly references, to 'revenge porn', which is unfunny, disgusting, morally repugnant, and completely unrelated," they wrote.
"Even within the fictional narrative we created, there was no violence or exploitation. It was always about agency and proactive empowerment."
