You would think a boy band as massive as *NSYNC would’ve been raking in the dough in their prime. With hits like “Bye Bye Bye” and “It’s Gonna Be Me” on their belt, there’s no reason every member of the group shouldn’t have been set for life. But the music industry is a treacherous place, and they had the infamous Lou Pearlman as their manager. That meant they were effectively being robbed of what was rightfully theirs.
However, if we knew just how little they were actually making, I think their fans would’ve rioted. In an interview on The Zach Sang Show, Lance Bass revealed that *NSYNC was only making $35 a day at the height of their careers. Moreover, despite all the merchandise, CD sales, and sold-out tours, their first check was only $10,000.
To make matters worse, the group was essentially told to stop complaining. In a scathing indictment of capitalism, they were told it could be worse: they could still be working for free. “You should be grateful for that. You’ve been working for free for two, three years now,” Bass recalled being told at that point.
Why Lance Bass Says He Made More Money After His *NSYNC Days
Bass further clarified that any suggestions that he’s rich from his boy band days are extremely far-fetched. In fact, he argued that he made more money once the band broke off than he ever did as a unit. Even residuals are pretty sparse, and he can’t quite rely on them as his main source of income.
So where did all that money go if *NSYNC didn’t keep it? Lance Bass alleged what we could all imagine: it’s Lou Pearlman and the label that made a “f**k ton” off their work.
Most people might hold on to that kind of resentment for life. Thankfully, Bass isn’t quite that miserable, but he certainly felt a bit robbed of his value to this day. “No one set us up for life after that,” he said.
Bass isn’t the only one whose life radically changed in the aftermath of *NSYNC. Justin Timberlake admitted back in 2011 that being screwed by the group’s former manager made him feel extremely paranoid.
“Sometimes I used to break my neck to try and make people feel disarmed because I didn’t like it that they were so nervous or excited around me. Other times, I would misinterpret that [behavior], especially if there were cameras around. I’d think: this isn’t real, and I would act up,” Timberlake explained.
(Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
The post This *NSYNC Member Was Making a Shockingly Small Amount of Money at the Peak of the Band’s Fame appeared first on VICE.
