Business Insider recently called out several music acts, including Alice in Chains and Shinedown, for how they handled pandemic relief money.
The funds came from the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant, a program started during the Trump administration to help venues and artists hit hard by the pandemic, who could get up to $10 million for necessary expenses if they proved they really needed the money to keep their operations going.
The SBA said they followed the law when giving out the funds and checked the artists’ income drops rather than their assets. So, if the artists could show their income was down, they qualified for the aid.
The report pointed out that Alice in Chains members Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney each took $1.4 million, and Mike Inez got $682,000 as aid, which added up to $3.4 million of the $4.1 million they received.
While the band’s company, AIC Entertainment, claimed they did need the money, Business Insider pointed out the $48 million they made from selling their music rights a month before getting the grant.
The outlet still gave credit to Alice in Chains for using the money to pay their staff and equipment though a lot of it went to the members themselves.
Shinedown’s story was similar. Three of its members took most of the $8.3 million grant they received. On top of that, each band member got an extra $100,000 from another $1.2 million set aside for payroll, while 15 touring workers shared $650,000.
So far, neither band has responded to the article.
