Doing something for the “right reasons” is a time-honored tradition in Bachelor Nation. But this week, it’s not only on-air antics that are in question, but the ethics of show alumni. On Monday, Vulture reported that a number of former Bachelor and Bachelorette contestants had taken out loans from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Funds of this kind are meant for allowing small businesses to retain their employees during an unprecedented period of unemployment. Vulture confirmed via ProPublica’s online database that some of these reality stars, who often monetize their time on The Bachelor or Bachelorette through social media, requested upwards of $20,000 in PPP loans.
One such recipient was Tayshia Adams, a Bachelorette lead in 2020 and cohost of the current season. According to ProPublica, she received $20,833 for her one-employee LLC, Tayshia Adams Media. “As a business owner, television and podcast host, and brand ambassador, Tayshia obtained a PPP Loan that enabled her to hire an employee, to whom she offers market-based pay and benefits,” Adams’s representatives said in a statement to Vulture. “Since exhausting the PPP Loan funds, but in light of the growing economy, Tayshia has committed to retaining her employee for the foreseeable future.”
Colton Underwood, the former Bachelor who came out as gay in April, was funded $11,355 for his Colton Underwood Legacy Foundation, which assists people diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Underwood responded to criticism of his loan in a since-deleted Instagram Story. “My nonprofit filed for a PPP because we cancelled our charity events for this year,” he wrote. “We help people living with CF. I don’t make a dime from my non profit…please stop lumping me in with the bachelor. I don’t fuck with them anymore, they don’t fuck with me. Point blank.”
Other Bachelor Nation members to receive COVID-19 bailouts include former Bachelor Arie Luyendyk Jr. and his wife, Lauren Burnham Luyendyk, whom he met on the show. The couple collected $20,830 for their company, Instagram Husband, which lists two employees. (As Vulture notes, the Luyendyks, who share three children, recently purchased a second home in Hawaii.) Additionally, Dale Moss, who won Clare Crawley’s abbreviated season of The Bachelorette, applied for a $20,833 loan that has been approved, but not yet fully disbursed. (Representatives for Moss and the Luyendyks have yet to respond to Vulture’s request for comment.)
As news of the PPP loans broke, other members of Bachelor Nation began voicing their opinions. That included former Bachelor Nick Viall, who tweeted, “What’s legal isn’t always right. What’s illegal isn’t always wrong. Don’t know everyone’s situation, but my gut tells any alum applying for a PPP is both savvy and shitty.”
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