Shaina Shepherd, singer at Nudedragons show, says she ‘could never front Soundgarden’

In December, the surviving members of Soundgarden — Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd — reunited for a charity performance under the alias Nudedragons. Joining them on lead vocals was a Seattle musician named Shaina Shepherd, who’s now responded to the idea of joining the “Black Hole Sun” rockers full time.

She took to the Facebook comments of an article published by the site Hot Metal asking “Should Soundgarden permanently reform with Shania Shepherd?” Shepherd first fired back at readers who replied “no,” declaring, “Haters gonna hate while I live my dream.”

She then added, “Soundgarden is a revolutionary band that changed my life, your life, the world. I could never front Soundgarden.”

“But I love making music with those guys,” she continued. “I did it for me, for them like any other music endeavor. I don’t care what any of you think – never did. I care what they think – always will.”

Shepherd concluded that the original article is “meaningless.”

The Nudedragons show featured performances of songs including “Outshined” and “Hunted Down.” The three surviving members have reunited several times since frontman Chris Cornell‘s death in 2017, including at the 2019 Cornell tribute concert and during a 2021 Brandi Carlile show.