Stories

sWillie Nelson Owed The Government This Many Millions Of Dollars

ADVERTISEMENT

Beware the ides of April. Even before that date, paperwork piles up for taxes. Even when the volume of numbers isn’t a pain, sometimes they can hide unpleasant surprises. One shocking surprise lies with Willie Nelson’s finances. It turns out Willie Nelson and the IRS are something like ancestral rivals and the financial baggage between them is enormous.

You wouldn’t know by watching Nelson handle it, though. Grunge reports that Nelson made the most out of anytime the IRS brought him in to settle the score. He even had fun with it and signed autographs on the side. That might be a surprising scene by itself, but the amount Nelson owed the government is actually even more shocking.

ADVERTISEMENT

Willie Nelson versus the IRS

Willie Nelson’s bus joined him on his way to work things out with the IRS, the better to sign autographs on the way / Craigslist

Taxes can go by quickly or snowball into a massive migraine. Everyone wants to keep what they can of their hard-earned cash while saving responsibly for a comfortable future. It’s a difficult balance that’s made harder by tax season as a whole.

ADVERTISEMENT

RELATED: Willie Nelson Sings Touching Song About The Reality Of Growing Older

Those with insane wealth generally give more up for tax season in a way that’s proportionate to their finances. But even taking this trend into account, Willie Nelson owed the IRS an incomprehensible amount. By the agency’s estimates, the singer racked up $32 million in money owed. Eventually, they seized his assets. That brought the bill down a bit… to a mere $16.7 million. Reportedly, he knew this seizure was likely and sent his guitar far away to stay safe.

It’s not all deliberate debt, though

When not accumulating money he owes the government, Nelson keeps himself busy with his music career / The Independent

Sending his guitar Trigger to Hawaii was a calculated move. But this deliberate safety measure doesn’t fully represent how Nelson allocates his resources. As of last year, at least, his money stopped going towards smoking since he ditched the habit, according to CNN.

Additionally, he spends the money on noble causes. One such cause included rescuing seventy horses to keep safely on his ranch. When he’s not spending money on the good, the bad, and the absurd, he’s keeping himself busy with his career. He’s made a significant contribution to the music world, so it’s still incredible to think he would owe that much.

Very few people owed several millions of dollars like Willie Nelson / army.mil courtesy Clipart

RELATED: Willie Nelson, Neil Young, & Others Performing At Stephen Still’s Autism Benefit

Show comments
Share
Published by

Recent Posts

Dana Carvey Apologizes For “Offensive” ‘SNL’ Skit That Had Sharon Stone Strip Down

Saturday Night Live started in 1975 but it remains as relevant as ever - even…

3 hours ago

King Charles Appears Gaunt In Virtual Appearance For Maundy Thursday After Cancer Diagnosis

King Charles is going ahead with some of his usual appointments and duties. Recently, he…

7 hours ago

Billie Lourd Shows Off Son Watching Great Grandmother Debbie Reynolds In ‘Singin’ In The Rain’

Billie Lourd recently shared a snap of her three-year-old son, Kingston, to Instagram, watching his…

8 hours ago

‘Growing Pains’ Cast Then And Now 2024

UPDATE 3/28/2024 The pains of growing… made better thanks to the seven-season run of Growing…

8 hours ago

Fans Concerned About Tim McGraw, Faith Hill’s Daughter As She Looks ‘Too Thin’

Country music icons Tim McGraw and Faith Hill welcomed their third daughter, Audrey Caroline, in…

9 hours ago

Prince, Paris And Bigi Jackson Make Rare Red Carpet Appearance At ‘MJ: The Musical’

Michael Jackson's three children, Prince, Paris, and Bigi, made a rare public appearance together on…

9 hours ago