Lil Jon Takes PPP Loan To Keep His Team Paid During Pandemic

Lil Jon is making sure his team is financially taken care of during the pandemic and offsetting lost tour income by accessing funds available through the government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), part of the CARES Act.

The music industry was hit particularly hard by COVID-19, with touring coming to a complete halt. According to the publication, Lil Jon was planning over 75 shows in 2020, and there is still uncertainty when touring will resume.

Lil Jon was able to keep his core team employed throughout the pandemic by receiving a PPP loan of between $150,000 and $350,000, per the Small Business Administration and Treasury Department.

“Touring is a main source of income, and since COVID has become a part of our lives, I’ve been off the road for months and likely will be for at least the rest of the year,” Lil Jon told Rolling Stone. “Like many other artists, I got a team, and these are folks that help support me/my career… so I’m doin’ what I can to support them during all this.”

Lil Jon told Rolling Stone that his decision to go virtual while unable to tour pushed him to hire an additional employee to head his digital team.

“I decided that every Saturday night, I’m doin’ live DJ sets from my house– which in order to put together – I had to not only completely dive-in and learn a new skill set, but it costs money,” Lil Jon said. “To do these streams right every week, there’s a lot of production and equipment involved, that I’ve actually had to acquire a new employee that does my video content and tech aspects.”

“It’s been important to me that fans are able to view my DJ sets while gettin’ the best experience they can watching from home, so with that comes the expenses and labor,” he added.