Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, and more allegedly used COVID-19 relief money to fund lavish lifestyle (PO)

Several stars were accused of taking money from the United States government as part of relief programs. However, they allegedly used that money for personal gain.

A slew of celebrities were accused of pocketing funds meant to aid small business during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among those accused are some massive A-listers like Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, and Marshmellow. The program, Shuttered Venue Operators Grant, was put into effect by the Trump administration in 2020 and was meant to keep independent venues and arts afloat during the time of isolation.

“Eligible applicants may qualify for grants equivalent to 45% of their gross earned revenue, with the maximum amount available for a single grant award of $10 million. $2 billion is reserved for eligible applications with up to 50 full-time employees,” explains the program website. The funds were meant to help with “ordinary and necessary” expenses, but a report alleged that some celebrities botched that definition for personal gain.

Business Insider, for example, alleged Lil Wayne received an $8.9 million grant, allegedly spending $1.3 million on private jet flights and $460,000 on clothes and accessories. The dollars were allegedly also dished out to a mystery woman and used to cover the costs of a canceled concert event.

Documents seen by Business Insider allege these artists were handed millions (
Image:
Getty Images for BACARDI)
Similarly, Brown allegedly secured a $10 million grant, maxing out the allowed payment. He allegedly shelled out $5.1 million to himself and threw an $80,000 33rd birthday party. As for Marshemellow, he reportedly received a $9.9 million grant, reporting that he made more than that in 2019 on touring.

All of the artists did not respond to Business Insider for comment. The artists are allegedly among 13,000 art groups which benefited from the tax-payer funded program. However, there’s no evidence that all those handed money misused their funds. Initially, musicians weren’t even allowed to receive the funding, but were later adopted into the program in late 2021. It shelled out $16 billion to shutdown venues affected by the pandemic.

In order to receive the funds, they needed to make a statement to the Small Business Administration who evaluated the needs of those who applied. They were also required to that their business revenue fell by at least 25% over the year. In a statement to Business Insider, the SBA claimed they followed the law.

However, since they were only asked to evaluate revenue, celebrities’ massive assets were not taken into account in the decisions.