Source: (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Roc Nation) / (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Roc Nation)
Kanye West & Jay-Z Top Forbes Highest Earning Musicians Of 2019
As the year comes to a close all the record labels and accountants are getting ready to tally the numbers of your favorite celebrities for 2019. When it comes to the top earners the list are pretty much already determined with the highest grossing prospects light years ahead of the competition. Thanks to Forbes we now have the top earning musicians for 2019. Not to be confused with the wealthiest list this list is consisted of income earned within the calendar year of 2019. Here are a few of our favorites and their rank on the list and the amazing moves they made to land on the list. You can find the full list here via Forbes.
#2 Kanye West
Kanye West came in number 2 on the list only being beaten out by the professional victim herself Taylor Swift who beat Ye only by $35 Million mainly due to her touring. Kanye West however only had one show this year being his Sunday Service at Coachella and a few select Sunday Services which were mainly free or around $5-$20. The majority of Kanye West millions came from the massive success of his partnership with ADIDAS. The Yeezy brand continues to skyrocket and show unseen growth in the sneaker space since Michael Jordan and his ‘Jordan Brand’. Unlike Michael, Kanye West owns 100% of the Yeezy brand and gets a higher royalty rate from ever sale than Jordan. Kanye also saw massive dollars hit his bank account from his merch he sells on KanyeWest.com. People were outraged at his Holy Spirit merch during his Coachella performance but it seems the ones not outraged and willing to buy were more than it seems. Ye also dropped his “Jesus Is King‘ album which debuted #1 on Billboard. Forbes formally announced Kanye West had joined the billionaire club earlier this year when the Yeezy brand was estimated to pass almost $2 billion dollars in sales with an evaluation over $1 Billion dollars. West topping the list comes as no surprise as he recently purchased a small city in Cody, Wyoming and weeks later purchased a second city where he hopes to expand his Yeezy empire.
#6(tie) Jay-Z & Beyonce
Jay-Z & Beyonce have never been strangers to this list. They have always appeared on the list always making sure to bring in their coins no matter what. Beyonce dominated the top of the year with the release of her “Homecoming” Netflix documentary. Her Netflix deal alone is rumored to have earned her north of $60 million dollars. Beyonce also joined Kanye West in becoming apart of the Adidas family. Adidas will also be the new home of her successful clothing brand Ivy Park. Hov has continued to dominate with his Roc Nation venture adding more successful acts to its roaster every year. This year alone he added Meek Mill, Lil Uzi Vert, Griselda, Tinashe, Jim Jones and others. Most notably this year Roc Nation struck a long term partnership with the NFL due to its successful operation of Roc Nations sports management division. His Tidal music streaming service is steadily showing user/subscriber growth while the competition is at a stand still. The ‘Made In America’ festival went on without any issues even after the city tried to take away its location which they ultimately came to an agreement on to keep it where its historically been held. Last but not least the Dusse is still moving and the ACE of spades is still being poured. Hov even brought the formerly known “Hennypalooza” under his wing and revamped it with the name “Dussepalooza”.
#8 Drake
Drake continues to be the top guy in the rap game who just can’t be stopped. In 2019 alone Billboard estimated Drake raked in $43,953,381 off touring alone. The most impressive part is Drake did that off 24 shows. Drake also struck a very lucrative deal with XS night club in Las Vegas for millions to perform 12 times with one being New Years Eve. Drake also struck a deal with the XS parent hotel The Wynn that opened his own OVO brand store in the hotel. Drake also saw returns from his whiskey partnership in ‘Virgina Black’. His ‘October Very Own’ clothing line is still bringing in millions and selling out without much promotion. Drake recently announced his new venture in Canada which sees him joining the marijuana space up north. Drake also saw the fruits of his labor/investments on buying British show “Top Boy” which he struck a deal with Netflix and released the latest season on their platform for a nice payday. Even in a year where he didn’t release an album Drake still earned 4.7 billion streams on Spotify alone. Each year Drake brings in millions from his Apple radio show but he announced earlier this year he has a new deal with Sirus/XM to bring the show to their platform. Drake also still has his very lucrative Nike deal which he renewed last year amid a botched switch to Adidas.
#9 Diddy
Diddy isn’t a stranger to this list either. His earnings are more cut & dry than the other because most of his earnings are from self owned business’ and investments that pay him well each and every year. His Revolt TV is still showing growth and even expanded its ‘Revolt Conference’ hosting one in LA & another in ATL in addition to the original conference that he’s had for years. Ciroc is still booming adding new flavors to spike growth throughout the year. Lets not forget his historic back catalog of music that produces millions in revenue each and every year.
Outside the top 10 hiphop & R&B still represented with Rihanna bringing in $62 Million, Travis Scott a new face to the list comes in at #12 with an impressive $58 Million, and Eminem landed at #19 with $50 million,
Safe to say with hiphop becoming the #1 genre in the world its padding the pockets of some of our favs very nicely !
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