The estate of the late former Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison have filed a lawsuit against the band and claimed they “callously” used his death as a marketing tool for their most recent album The End, So Far.
Jordison was a founding member of the metal giants, but departed the group under unknown circumstances in 2013. While no reason was provided for his exit, the drummer later made it clear that it wasn’t his decision to leave. Now, it has been alleged that he found out about his firing “abruptly” over e-mail.
The lawsuit was filed in June by by Steamroller, LLC, and has been obtained by Blabbermouth. They claim Corey Taylor and Michael Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan possess “at least 22 items”, which Steamroller believes belong to Jordison’s estate. Furthermore, these items have been showcased in a travelling museum, which they state is how Slipknot “line[d] their pockets with profit off of Jordison’s devoted fanbase.”
The complaint claims: “After abruptly kicking Jordison out of Slipknot in 2013, Taylor and Crahan expressly promised in a written agreement to return all of Jordison’s belongings in exchange for Jordison’s promise to release certain claims against.”
It continues: “The agreement contained a non-exclusive list of broad categories of items that (Taylor and Crahan) represented were in their possession and that they would return to Jordison. (Taylor and Crahan) purported to comply with the agreement by returning certain items to Jordison but, unbeknownst to Jordison, (they) had executed the agreement with no intention of performing their obligations thereunder, and knowingly concealed from Jordison that they possessed numerous other items belonging to Jordison that they never returned to him.”
Another aspect of the lawsuit is the Slipknot Partnership, which Jordison entered alongside Crahan, Taylor and Paul Gray. However, in 2010, Jordison began suffering with a neurological disease which stopped him from using his left leg, and as his condition worsened, he received news of his dismissal via e-mail.
The lawsuit states: “The callousness of Jordison’s firing and other mistreatment at the hands of Crahan and Taylor have been widely reported and criticized by fans of the band. Since the 1990s, Jordison had dedicated his life to making Slipknot a metal sensation, from which Crahan and Taylor handsomely profited. It made no sense why Crahan and Taylor would treat Jordison with such disdain, especially in light of Jordison’s declining health.”
Jordison agreed to a release agreement from the Slipknot Partnership in 2015, which they state should have led to his former bandmates to return “any property, including musical gear or equipment, belonging to” him.
Furthermore, the lawsuit criticises the actions of Taylor and Crahan following Jordison’s death in 2021. It reads: “While family, friends, and fans mourned the loss of the legendary drummer, neither bandmate expressed condolences to Jordison’s family after his passing. Instead, Taylor and Crahan heartlessly sought to profit off of Jordison’s death. Slipknot released a new album in 2022 titled The End, So Far. Fan reviews of the album rarely miss the opportunity to lament Jordison’s absence. Taylor and Crahan callously used Jordison’s death as marketing for their new album.”
“Taylor publicly dedicated The End, So Far to Jordison, claiming that the realization of Jordison’s passing ‘crept in’ while making the album. Taylor even acknowledged that he and Crahan had mistreated 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,’” they added.
It continues: “Perhaps worst of all, Crahan and Taylor publicly lied to fans that they had contacted Jordison’s family to check on them and express their condolences and love for Jordison in the wake of his passing. This was utterly false, and deeply upsetting for Jordison’s family to read such a blatant lie on the internet. It is clear that Taylor and Crahan did not actually care about Jordison or his family; they cared only about drumming up publicity and sales of the new album.”
Taylor and Crahan are yet to publicly respond to the lawsuit.
