Billy Corgan Paid Ransom To Hacker To Prevent Leak Of Smashing Pumpkins Album

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — Smashing Pumpkins frontman and Highland Park resident Billy Corgan last week revealed he was blackmailed by a "mercenary" hacker who had obtained an advance copy of his recently released album.

The hack took place more than six months ago, with the hacker also acquiring unreleased tracks from other notable bands, Corgan said Friday in a radio interview with KROC-FM.

"Right when the album was being mixed and mastered," Corgan explained, "which is a very kind of nervous time, because the files are finally going out to different people, and as you can imagine, these days everything's digital."

Corgan, who grew up in west suburban Glendale Heights and owns Madame Zuzu's in Highland Park, said he was notified of the hack by a direct message on social media.

"So a fan contacted me and said nine of the songs have leaked," Corgan said. "And they were all the like, probably the most catchy, singly-type songs, right? So it's like, not only is it six months too early, but you're pretty much giving away the album before you even have a chance to even set your feet into the ground. And somehow, some hacker was offering the files for money, and we were able to trace it, and pay off keep it from leaking, and the FBI got involved."

Corgan, who has held several musical and wrestling-related fundraiser on behalf of the Highland Park community since last July, said he paid the ransom out of his own pocket.

"But we were able to stop the leak from happening," he said. "Because it was a it was a mercenary person who had hacked somebody, I don't want to say who, and they had other stuff from other artists. It wasn't like some Pumpkins fan who was hell-bent on breaking it on Reddit, they were just a mercenary, and somehow they gave some information that allowed the FBI to track them."

---

Corgan revealed the hack on the Klein/Ally Show on May 5, the same day Smashing Pumpkins released Atum: Act Three, the third installment of the band's 12th studio album, Atum: A Rock Opera in Three Acts.

Although he said he was unaware of the results of the FBI investigation, Corgan said he believed other recording artists' material had also been acquired by the same hacker.

"They had stuff that was shocking to me. Like classic stuff from bands of the past, probably doing reissues," he said. "I don't think any of that stuff's leaked out, so whatever happened, it all got shut down."