Chris Cornell’s widow Vicky is claiming Soundgarden have lowballed her with a buyout offer, as she claims Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron, and Ben Shepherd offered her $300,000 for Chris’ share in the band, which is less than she got for her 2018 Soundgarden royalties. Soundgarden demanded a trial with Vicky Cornell last summer.
Vicky claims that Soundgarden were offered $16 million for their masters, which means she’d get $4 million for her cut, and that is what leads to her valuation of the the band’s ownership.
A rep for Soundgarden tells Alternative Nation, “As requested by the Estate of Chris Cornell and as required by the laws of the State of Washington, the surviving members of Soundgarden submitted to the Cornell Estate four months ago a buy-out offer of the Estate’s interests in Soundgarden calculated by respected music industry valuation expert Gary Cohen.
Since then, the band members have continued to try to settle all disputes with the Cornell Estate and in their several attempts to settle, the band members have elected to offer multiple times more than the amount calculated by Cohen. This dispute has never been about money for the band. This is their life’s work and their legacy.”
Vicky Cornell and Soundgarden’s legal battles over royalties and the band’s unheard final album have gotten ugly, with a ‘fraud’ accusation last year.