Posted by | Ray Cornelius
Kendrick Lamar may be the “King of New York” but he has a long way to go before he can be crowned Forbes’ Cash King of Hip-Hop. The annual list of rappers “who can really make it rain” was released with Diddy sitting pretty in the #1 position for the first time. The hip-hop mogul reportedly earned $50 million from Ciroc Vodka, Bad Boy Entertainment and Sean John Clothing line. Not bad for a Howard University drop out, huh?
In the #2 spot is Jay Z whose estimating earnings include $43 million. This is all due to his concert tours, management company and Roc Nation label. Jay has also expanded his brand to include sports management through Roc Nation Sports.
Dr. Dre dropped from #1 to #3 with an estimated $40 million dollars from his Beats By Dre, headphone line. He is followed by the lone female on the list, Nicki Minaj, who has earned $29 million. The Young Money princess got her loot from her judging last season of American Idol, touring and her endorsement with Pepsi.
According to Forbes, “The Cash Kings list tracks pretax earnings for all living artists whose work is primarily classified as hip-hop or rap.” Forbes also considers income from touring, record sales, publishing, merchandise sales, endorsements and other ventures as well as interviews with numerous managers, lawyers, record executives and some of the artists themselves.”
Take a look at the Forbes’ Cash Kings Video and the complete list below:
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1. Diddy ($50M)
2. Jay Z ($43M)
3. Dr. Dre ($40M)
4. Nicki Minaj ($29M)
5. Birdman ($21M)
6. Kanye West ($20M)
7. Lil Wayne ($16M)
8. Wiz Khalifa ($14M)
9. Ludacris ($12M)
10. Pitbull ($11M)
11. Drake ($10.5M)
12. Snoop Dogg ($10M)
12. Eminem ($10M)
14. Kendrick Lamar ($9M)
14. Pharrell ($9M)
14. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ($9M)
17. Swizz Beatz ($8.5M)
18. Tech N9ne ($7.5M)
19. 50 Cent ($7M)
20. Lil Jon ($6M)
20. Rick Ross ($6M)
20. Mac Miller ($6M)
20. Jeezy ($6M)
20. Questlove ($6M)
