Explaining his actions. Graham Sierota issued a public apology after reaching out to Travis Barker’s 13-year-old daughter, Alabama, on Instagram. After being called out, the Echosmith drummer expressed his regrets in a statement shared on Thursday, August 1.

“I had invited Alabama to my parents’ big family BBQ along with many other people, and it wasn’t until she responded that I realized her age at which point I apologized to her,” Graham, 20, told PEOPLE. The drummer continued, “I’m really sorry and feel very badly about this. I didn’t realize she was a minor and assumed she was my age. I made a careless mistake and this is a big lesson for me. I would like to apologize again to Alabama, her dad Travis, and her family.”

Echosmith Drummer Apologizes for Messaging Travis Barker's 13-Year-Old Daughter
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images

As we previously reported, Travis, 43, went into full protective father mode when he also discovered the other alleged DMs that Alabama received from Graham. “When I found out a 20-year-old man was trying to get in touch with my 13-year-old daughter by filling her Instagram messages with party invites and compliments, I was disgusted,” the Blink 182 rocker told The Blast on July 31. “That’s predatory behavior, and there is nothing cool, normal or OK about it at all.”

Earlier this week, Travis’ daughter shared with ex Shanna Moakler, posted since-deleted screenshots of Instagram messages that she allegedly received from Graham, the oldest dated back to 2016. “By the way I’m Graham from Echosmith and I think ur beautiful,” one read.

Graham reached out again on July 12 to invite Alabama to a BBQ, which he referenced in his apology. She wrote, “Ur like 40,” and he replied, “I just wanted to say i really like ur music and sorry for messaging and I’m 20.” Travis’ daughter then fired back, “Ok but u understand I’m a child?”

As of now, Graham’s Instagram page is on private.

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