NEWS
Anthrax frontman Joey Belladonna reveals that he once worked at a horse farm after he was first fired from the band in 1992.
In a video interview with Music Interview Corner, Belladonna – who rejoined the band from 2005 to 2006, and then returned in 2010 – spoke about life after he was let go by Anthrax. At that point, his final studio release with the band was the 1990 album ‘Persistence Of Time’.
Belladonna admitted the firing was “unexpected” and that he “wouldn’t have preferred it… but it happened.”
“I was actually working in a horse barn for a couple of years,” he said. “I was [in] maintenance, and Krista, my wife, we both worked at a pretty famous riders’ facility. I cut grass all day. It was so big there, I couldn’t complete all my work each day. It was a long, long day. It took me two, three days to weedy the whole place.”
He continued: “I didn’t really necessarily have to do that job. It was one of those things that fell into place and I enjoyed it and I got a lot of experience from it.” Watch the full interview below.
While working at the unnamed barn, Belladonna continued to work on music: “I also had a band; I was doing some cover music and I was playing drums [under the band Chief Big Way].”
“And it was kind of like the old days for me. So I just continued to do that and work on some original music and stuff. I kept myself busy. I didn’t really fall apart. I kept busy and just waited for some time, and all of a sudden I’d come back. So here I am.”
Belladonna’s eponymous band released two albums in the 1990s, a self-titled debut in 1995 and ‘Spells Of Fear’ in 1999, while earlier this year, Belladonna performed a slate of shows with a new cover band, including his wife Krista, honouring the music of Dio.
Last month, Belladonna’s bandmate Charlie Benante spoke out against streaming platforms, exclaiming that Spotify is where “music goes to die”.
“We have the music on there because we have to play along with the fucking game, but I’m tired of playing the game,” he said.
“We get taken advantage of the most out of any industry. As artists, we have no health coverage, we have nothing. They fucked us so bad, I don’t know how we come out of it. You’d probably make more money selling lemonade on the corner.”
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso honored Shyne with a key to the city during a ceremony held at the East Flatbush Young Men’s Mentorship Expo on Saturday. The recognition highlighted both his influence in hip hop and his contributions as a public figure and advocate. Reynoso also declared April 25, 2026 as “Shyne Day” in Brooklyn.
“Shyne embodies what is possible when a community believes in its young people, and the magic that can happen when young people are given the resources they need to thrive. East Flatbush raised Shyne, and it only made sense to present him with the Key to Brooklyn as we team up to deliver hope and opportunity to dozens of young men today,” Reynoso said at the event, as caught by BK Reader.
Shyne also addressed the crowd. “This is the community that raised me, and it’s important for me to pass that love forward,” he said. “There couldn’t be a better way to celebrate this milestone than coming back home and pouring into the next generation.” He also revealed that everyone in attendance would receive complimentary tickets to his 25th anniversary concert on May 2 at the Kings Theatre.
The show will mark 25 years since the release of his self titled debut studio album, which arrived on September 26, 2000. Even while Shyne was incarcerated at the time, the project debuted and reached number five on the Billboard 200 chart. It moved close to 160,000 units in its opening week.
Earlier this week, Shyne posted a video of himself standing outside the Kings Theatre on Instagram while promoting the upcoming performance. "Can’t wait to see you this Saturday, May 2 @kingsbklyn as we celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Shyne Album…..the celebration will continue @crownhilltheatre where I will meet, take pictures and party with you, my loyal supporters, who’ve made Shyne a Rap Legend," he captioned the post. Fans filled the comments with fire emojis in response.
