Band donates $250,000 to family of late Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan
Heavy metal band Bad Wolves originally hoped to record a cover of the Cranberries' hit "Zombie" with frontwoman Dolores O'Riordan, but when the singer died unexpectedly, they decided to make the song a tribute to her instead.
After the singer's death in January at the age of 46, Bad Wolves said that they planned to donate the proceeds from their cover of "Zombie" to her children. On Tuesday night, they made good on that promise.
The band presented O'Riordan's son Taylor, step-son, Donny Jr., and ex-husband, Don Burton, with a check for $250,000 during their show in New York City.
Bad Wolves frontman Tommy Vext told ABC News that giving O'Riordan's family the check is "an honor" and "overwhelming."
"Giving back this check to them makes it all feel so right and feel so good," added drummer John Boecklin.
The "Zombie" cover was originally intended to be a collaboration with O'Riordan.
But on January 15, the day she was supposed to record her vocals for the track, O'Riordan was found dead in her London hotel room.
O'Riordan's cause of death has not been released.
Bad Wolves has been performing "Zombie" live across the country since releasing their version of the song. The response, Boecklin said, has been "unreal."
"We're singing 'What's in your...' and we don't even say 'head,' I just put the microphone out to the audience, and ... it's thunderous," Vext said of the hit song's lyrics.
"It reminds me of watching Live Aid concerts of Queen, and the people singing back to Freddie Mercury. It's at that level of intensity, it's insane," he added.
Bad Wolves said they will continue to play "Zombie" throughout the rest of the year on tour and hope to ultimately raise $1 million by the end of 2018 for O'Riordan's children.
"We're touring relentlessly and gruelingly for basically the rest of the year to try to make that goal happen," Vext said. "We have some really cool bands taking us out to help champion the cause, so it's a cool thing."
