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"We were famous, but we were not rich," Bass explains before talking about how finances were mismanaged
Contrary to popular belief, Lance Bass wasn't raking in the cash during his NSYNC days.
During an appearance on SiriusXM's "The Jess Cagle Show," the 43-year-old NSYNC alum looked back at his time in the iconic '90s boy band and dispelled some common misconceptions about life as a pop superstar.
Bass revealed he wasn’t rolling in the dough as many would like to believe when he was asked about the benefits of "being rich and famous really young."
"Well, the worst thing is people thinking that we were rich, because we were not," he laughed. "We were famous, but we were not rich. I made way more money after NSYNC than I did during NSYNC."
Lou Pearlman, who along with Bass' band created many other boy bands of the era, was sued by several members of NSYNC as well as other groups, including the Backstreet Boys. Pearlman infamously perpetuated one of the largest Ponzi schemes in America; he was convicted of fraud in 2008 and died in prison at 62 years old in August 2016.
"He really took a majority of all of our stuff... [made] horrible, horrible deals," the singer said, referencing Pearlman.
Though his time in NSYNC wasn’t without its difficulties, Bass recalled sharing the crazy journey with his former band members Chris Kirkpatrick, JC Chasez, Justin Timberlake and Joey Fatone.
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View StoryIn fact, the "Love Wrecked" star credited the other guys for keeping him grounded and sane throughout the ride.
"To do that, with those guys, it was incredible. And you had some of the best experiences ever. Obviously, it changed my life, led me to so many things I wanted to do in life... they're incredible, incredible guys," he gushed, adding that they formed a "great support system."
"I'm glad I was in a band because I had four of my brothers that kept you down to earth, right? If you said anything off the wall, they would just slap you down like, 'What did you just say?' But if you're a solo artist, you're always like, 'Yes, yes, yes.' You're the boss. That's it," Bass explained. "You kind of get this Michael Jackson syndrome of not knowing what reality is. But with a group, we had a great family unit around us, we were held down to earth."
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