Slipknot Sued by Late Drummer’s Estate for Profiting from His Death
A lawsuit filed by Joey Jordison's estate accuses Slipknot of making money from the death of the former drummer, who was ousted from the group he co-founded 10 years ago.
The legal papers name Corey Taylor and Michael Shawn “Clown” Crahan as defendants, alleging that they exploited Jordison's demise to increase the sales of their 2022 album, “The End, So Far.” “Taylor and Crahan showed no sympathy to Jordison's family after he died, while family, friends and fans grieved the legendary drummer's passing. Rather, they coldly tried to cash in on Jordison's death,” the documents state.
“Taylor announced that ‘The End, So Far’ was a tribute to Jordison, saying that he was hit by Jordison's passing ‘while making the album. He also admitted that he and Crahan had wronged Jordison in an interview, telling fans that they ‘were hoping to mend fences with him, and it’s one of those things that tells you: whatever you need to do, do it now, because you never know when you’re gonna lose somebody.’” The estate, Steamroller, LLC, also claims that the metal band did not give back Jordison's belongings – such as musical instruments, gear and wardrobe – and used them in their touring museum, Knotfest.
“The lawsuit says that Taylor and Crahan agreed in writing to return all of Jordison's items after they abruptly kicked him out of Slipknot in 2013, in exchange for Jordison's agreement to drop certain claims against them.”
“Jordison was unaware that [they] had signed the agreement without intending to fulfill their obligations under it, and deliberately hid from Jordison that they had many other items that belonged to him that they never gave back to him.” Slipknot's lawyers have filed court documents asking for the lawsuit to be thrown out, saying, “Defendants generally deny each and every allegation and purported claim set forth in Plaintiff’s First Amended Complaint and further deny that Plaintiff is entitled to any relief whatsoever.”
Jordison, who was the original drummer and co-founder of Slipknot, passed away in July 2021 at 46 years old after battling transverse myelitis, a rare nervous system disorder. He also played guitar and drums for Murderdolls and Scar the Martyr, respectively, and collaborated with bands and artists like Metallica, Korn and Rob Zombie throughout his career.Slipknot revealed on their website in December 2013 that they had “parted ways” with Jordison. Jordison later said in a 2016 interview with Metal Hammer that his “f-cking cowardly” and “f–ked up” departure was done without “a band meeting” or “anything from management”. “All I got was a stupid f—ing email saying I was out of the band that I busted my ass my whole life to f–king create,” he claimed, alleging that his bandmates also confused his transverse myelitis diagnosis with a drug addiction problem.