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| Diddy |
Top - 1. Diddy: $60 million
He rarely performs these days, but Diddy rakes in cash from the fruits of a reputation forged in music: TV network Revolt, clothing line Sean John, alkaline water brand Aqua hydrate and Ciroc vodka, which brings in the bulk of his bucks. He’s also readying a new album, and enjoys being named No. 1. “You started learning how to count!” Diddy recently told FORBES.
Top - 2. Jay Z: $56 million
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| Jay |
His 22 shows with Beyoncé boosted the multifaceted mogul's bottom line alongside moneymaking ventures like entertainment company Roc Nation and Armand de Brignac champagne. The impact of his new streaming service, Tidal remains to be seen. But regardless of its fate, he’s taken his business game to previously unimaginable heights
Top - 3. Drake: $39.5 million
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| Drake |
The Canadian import clocks the highest Cash Kings finish of his young career, thanks mostly to earnings on the road, where he played 50 dates during our scoring period with a nightly average gross of nearly $1 million. Also padding Drake’s coffers: gold-certified surprise record If You're Reading This It's Too Late and endorsements for Sprite and Nike.
Top - 4. Dr. Dre: $33 million
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| Dr. Dre |
Selling Beats earned him $620 million last year, the top annual payday of any musician, ever. Despite a year-over-year drop of more than half a billion dollars, Dre makes the list thanks to smaller checks from Apple and his production catalogue. He also exec-produced biopic Straight Outta Compton and released his long-awaited third studio album.
Top - 5. Pharrell: $32 million
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| Pharrel |
The "Happy" singer is one of the more diversified performers on the list, clocking multimillion-dollar checks from touring, music and his role as a judge on The Voice. He also mingles his fashion sense with an entrepreneurial streak, as evidenced by his Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream clothing lines.
Top - 6. Eminem: $31 million
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| Eminem |
The Detroit native’s six shows on last summer's co-headlining Monster Tour with Rihanna averaged north of $5 million per show. Their pair of shows at Metlife Stadium grossed a total of $12.4 million, slightly more than Jay Z and Beyoncé tallied over two nights at the same venue
Top - 7. Kanye West: $22 million
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| Kanye West |
He didn’t crack the top five on this list, but Kanye West may have had the biggest year of any hip-hop cash king. Among his highlights were a memorable Grammy performance, a new Adidas shoe launch and an announcement of intention to run for president in 2020. Does he really intend to give new meaning to the term West Wing? With Kanye, one can never say never.
Top - 8. Wiz Khalifa: $21.5 million
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| Wiz Khalifa |
Pittsburgh’s best-known rapper may have relocated to “Pixburg” (Los Angeles) but he continues to keep his hometown on the rap map. This year is his best yet, thanks to his Furious 7 duet “See You Again” and incessant touring—plus accompanying sales of his weed-themed merch. “It’s part of my personality,” he told FORBES. “It wasn’t conscious at first, but then when I saw how far it was going and I was like, ‘Why not?’”
Top - 9. Nicki Minaj: $21 million
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| Nicki Minaj |
The world’s top-earning lady MC saw her earnings soar 50% over last year’s figure,mostly due to an uptick in touring. She also rakes in cash from endorsements with the likes of Pepsi and OPI - as well as her very own Myxmoscato, in which she holds a hefty equity stake and gets annual payouts as well.
Top - 10. Birdman: $18 million
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| Birdman |
The Cash Money chief continues his steady earnings pace, collecting a cut of his label’s eight-figure profits along with his brother and cofounder, Ronald “Slim”Williams. But there seems to be trouble brewing at hip-hop’s top record company, with a public—and allegedly violent—dispute with Lil Wayne, who recently released music through Jay Z’s Tidalstreaming.
video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvbV1gA8dOo
