Lance Bass claims NSYNC earned $35 a day and got its first $10K paycheck after years of success
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Achieving success is a tough task, but making money from it is probably even tougher, and no one knows this better than NSYNC's Lance Bass.
During a recent interview, the 'Bye Bye Bye' singer opened up about his financial struggles despite the group's hit albums and sold-out tours.
The 47-year-old revealed that he earned just $35 a day and received his first paycheck of $10,000 only after years of success.
He explained that life behind the scenes was not as glamorous as it appeared from the outside.
Lance Bass reveals NSYNC’s first $10,000 paycheck
The former boy band member made the remarks during the Tuesday, October 8, episode of 'The Zach Sang Show'. He recalled, “Our first check was $10,000,” noting that the surprisingly low amount came after “years of number one albums” and “sellout tours.”
“I mean, I don’t know how many millions I made off our merchandise because merchandise was insane. And then they finally give us a check,” he recalled. Bass claimed that he was paid just $35 a day.
He said that when he and his bandmates Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatrick and Joey Fatone received the promised $10,000 check, they were told, “You should be grateful for that. You’ve been working for free for two, three years now.”
“People think I’m so filthy rich from NSYNC, but no,” he insisted. “Not at all.” “I didn’t make money with NSYNC, like, hardly at all,” he claimed. “Everyone kept saying, ‘You’re young, you’re young,'” he recalled.
“Well, who cares if you’re young? You still need to make a living and set yourself up for the future because (in) most of these cases, it’s a finite time of being able to do something like that, and no one set us up for life after that,' he added.
Lance Bass opens up about NSYNC’s low earnings
For those unaware, NSYNC was formed in 1995, and this is not the first time Bass has spoken about being underpaid during his time with the group.
In 2023, Bass said the assumption that the band members were rich was “the worst thing.”
“We were famous, but we were not rich,” he confessed during an appearance on SiriusXM’s 'The Jess Cagle Show'.
“I made way more money after NSYNC than I did during NSYNC.” “We had a great support system,” he said. “I’m glad I was in a band, because I had four of my brothers that kept you down to earth.”
