Bono
The lead singer of U2 has had and still has quite a remarkable career. Not only he has a very successful band, but he is also a businessman and philanthropist. Bono, along with U2, has won 22 Grammy Awards and sold more than 150 million records globally. The singer and his wife established ‘EDUN’, a foundation with the purpose of substituting sustainable employment in developing areas of the world.
If you are think, “how did just a couple million records and awards get him here?”. The answer is that Bono has made much of his fortune outside of music., He had invested in Facebook's IPO, a clothing line and a five-star hotel. But his main income does come from his band. The "360 Tour" earned nearly $800 million between 2009 and 2011. In 2020, Bono’s net worth is roughly $700 million.
P. DIDDY
Sean John Combs, also known as P. DIDDY, is one of the most wealthy rappers and producers. He is an overall businessman and currently singed at Epic Records. In the mid-90s he started his own label, Bad Boy Entertainment, and took Notorious B.I.Gunder his wing through his tragically short career.
Nowadays, he is not so active in the music scene. Besides his huge music career, he also delved into the film Industry. He starred in some movies. Like this wasn’t enough, he had a clothing line that made more than $100 million in annual profits and some other side jobs. P. Diddy’s net worth is $855 million nowadays.
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey has been one of the most popular singers in the pop world for the last couple of decades. She has sold over 200 million records during her career and became one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Even though she hasn't released new music in years, but she is making so much money in royalties, particularly from her Christmas music, that she really doesn't need to.
Carey has earned the title of living pop legend, not only for selling millions of records but also for having 18 #1 singles as a solo artist. She has won around 400 awards, a couple of Grammy Awards and numerous American Music Awards. She might not be releasing many hits at the moment but she is doing OK.Mariah Carey’s net worth is an incredible $300 million.
Jay-Z
Jay-z has been rolling in cash for a long time. He started in the late 80s, beginning of the 90s, so it is safe to say he’s been around. The 19 Grammy-Award winning rapper founded the record label Roc-A-Fella Records with Damon Dash and Kareem Biggs in the mid-90s and later released his debut album ‘Reasonable Doubt’. This was the begging of a long successful career.
The hip-hop star co-founded Rocawear in 1999 and later sold the rights to the clothing brand for $204 million and also owns Tidal, music streaming service, which is valued at $600 million. By 2020 his net worth is at an incredible $1 billion. It is no secret he married one of the most beloved American singers, Beyonce. Together, they are the most powerful couple in the music industry.
Beyonce
It is safe to say that Beyonce is one of the biggest music artists still today, but many forget that she started back in the early 90s. In her early career, she joined the group Destiny’s Child in 1996 and their second album became a huge success, selling more than 8 million copies worldwide. They became 16-times platinum, I’m no genius but that’s serious cash.
After Destiny’s Child broke up, Beyonce went solo and slayed it. In 2013, her self-titled album, "Beyoncé", dropped with almost no publicity and broke records selling more than 800,000 albums in just the first three days. To this day her net worth is roughly $500 million dollars. and if you combined it with Jay-z's fortune you have an extremely rich couple.
Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks, the American songwriter, made a living by having a very profitable Country career, with the best-selling albums in the Soundscan age. Brooks has had great success with multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances. The man can pull off almost everything from Country to Pop.
His main income does come form music, and to be honest he doesn’t need much more since he makes serious money. His records No Fences and Ropin' the Wind are 31 times Platinum and he gets almost $90 million a year. His net worth is an estimated $330 Million dollars.
Sir Elton John
The famous English musician is, to this day, one of the most recognized and iconic singers in the Music Industry. He has been working since the past five decades with such a trajectory that no wonder he is loaded. With many songs on the top of the charts and some millions of albums sold he made quite the fortune.
The “Rocketman” has some royalty checks for writing music for The Lion King and his tour in Las Vegas has contributed to his large paycheck. He created a new music company called the Rocket Music Entertainment Group in 2011 and the following year he launched Rocket Sports Management. His net worth is estimated at about $500 million.
Pharrell Williams
The American rapper, songwriter and producer is one of the richest rappers in the world. He started quite young and hasn’t stopped yet. In the early 1990s, Pharrell formed an R&B group, the Neptunes, with his friend Chad Hugo. The gained a fan base quite quickly, therefore, a solid income.
In 2006, Williams focused on his solo career. Since releasing his first album, Pharrell has gained an incredible amount of popularity and released hits singles like ‘Happy’, which has over one BILLION views on YouTube. Not only he is an established singer but, he also has some extra businesses. He started “I Am OTHER”, a multimedia creative collection/record label. As of 2020, Pharrell Williams’ net worth is roughly $150 million.
Sting
The ex-lead singer from the British pop-rock band, The Police, has been in the Industry since the late 70s and hasn’t stopped. He has received 16 Grammy awards in total and has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Songwriter's Hall of Fame. It is no surprise due to the incredible work he has made over the years.
In 2007, The police did a reunion tour and made the seventh-highest grossing tour of all time, earning around $400 million dollars. Sting got so rich that he didn’t even notice when his accountant stole £6 million from him until some years passed. His net worth is approximately $400 million.
Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre is the second richest rapper in the world. He started his career in the mid-80s. In 1986, N.W.A was formed, with him as a member alongside Ice Cube, Eazy-E, DJ Yella, and MC Ren. It didn’t last long, he left the band and made his own album,The Chronic and Aftermath, selling 10 million copies.
Despite all the issues he’s faced, including lawsuits, loss, and infractions, he worked with some of the most important artists and made a profitable career. Dr. Dre had a high-end headphone company and later, he sold it to Apple for a monstrous $3 billion. His current net worth is at a whopping $820 million.
Jennifer Lopez
The multi-talented American singer has been around and earned her spot on this list due to the many projects he has been on. While she is still a huge star and is very active in the industry, she has been around for over three decades. She started as a dancer and got her start in the acting world thanks to the film Selena. In the same year, 1997, she made three other movies. In 1999, she released her first album, On The 6 and made it to the 100 hottest Billboard, the first woman to do so after Britney Spears.
She was the first woman to have a number one album and movie in the U.S at the same time, with her album J.LO selling over 3.8 million copies in America. In 2001, she opened her own fashion brand, making clothes for women with all shapes and forms. Jenny from the block has done it all and with major success. Her net worth is $400 million.
Usher
One of the most famous R&B singers in the 21st century, Usher, started at the age of 15 when he released his first self-titled debut album. It did very well and peaked at No.25 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and at No.167 on the Billboard 200. Not only that but his album 8701 sold over 210,000 copies in its first week.
Ever since then, he hasn’t stopped making music and helping other artists. He has been doing some other projects like creating US Records, and the co-ownership of professional basketball team the Cleveland Cavaliers. Usher’s net worth is $180 million dollars. Although he hasn't released his own music in years, he has been behind many huge artists like Justin Bieber this whole time, cashing in on their success as well.
Lars Ulrich
Lars Ulrich is the founding member of the heavy-metal band Metallica and one of the richest musicians in the heavy-metal world. The album Metallica was the one that put the band in the mainstream world selling 16 million copies in the United States alone. Not only was it a success in this particular genre but also, it's considered one of the best albums of all time.
The band is so massive that when they go on tour they gross more than $60 million from ticket sales, merchandise, and others. In 2018, the WorldWired Tour reached $67.9 million. The tour has grossed $414.4 million, from 139 concerts and is the ninth highest-grossing tour of all time. Lars has a net worth of $350 million.
Phil Collins
The singer actually started as a drummer to the band Genesis but, after putting the band on the top of the charts, Collin decided to go his own way and released his debut solo album called Face Value. His solo career was very successful, he peaked in the 90s but still is one of the most famous singers ever.
Collins has sold more than 100 million albums worldwide both as a solo artist and as a member of Genesis. In 2006 he toured with two former band members and won many awards over the years. His current net worth is around $260 Million dollars.
Dave Grohl
Former Nirvana member, Dave Grohl, started his career as the drummer of the band but after the death of Kurt Cobain he felt quite lost and music was his escape. He formed a new band called Foo Fighters in 1994 and hasn’t stopped yet. He has become one of the most successful musicians in the rock/grunge genre.
Dave really could be living just fine with the royalties from Nirvana but he still goes on tours and makes his own money. In 2018, the worldwide Concrete and Gold Tour grossed $114 million dollars. The Foo Fighters have sold millions of albums worldwide and won multiple awards. Dave Grohl has a net worth of $280 million dollars.
Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi isn’t quite living on a prayer since he has a very successful career. He and his band have had many hists and very profitable tours. The band has released 13 studio albums with and two more solo albums selling 120 million albums worldwide. Not only he delved in singing but he had a few acting roles.
His last four albums all reached #1 on the Billboard 200 chart. One of his many sides jobes is real state, as he invested in some properties, including a condo in NYC and his New Jersey mansion, each house has an estimated value of $22 million dollars. His net worth is at a whopping $410 million dollars.
Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson was the youngest of the Jackson family, and while she sometimes performed with The Jackson Five, she focused on her solo career and looked for her own style. In 1991, Janet signed a contract valued at between $32 – $50 million with Virgin Records. She is an important figure in popular culture, or should we say, an icon.
Her album Janet Jackson peaked at number 63 on the Billboard 200 and she sold millions of albums. She has made $260 million in album sales and $458 million from touring. And yes, she is married to a billionaire but trust me, she does not ask for any money since her net worth is approximately $190 Million dollars.
Madonna
The Queen of Pop achieved popularity by pushing the boundaries of lyrical content in mainstream music. Her shocking imagery and lyrics have impacted the industry and the audiences. Madonna has sold 300 million records worldwide to this day, and while she has enough money to be set for life, she still continues to perform and release new music every now and then.
The singer has been at the top of the charts thanks to the many hits she accomplished over the decades. Also, she was named the number two best-selling female artist in the U.S. with 64 million certified albums sold. Madonna’s one of the richest singers in the world with a net worth of $850 million.
Celine Dion
Celine Dion is a Canadian singer who we all know thanks to the song My Heart Will Go On, used as the official soundtrack for Titanic. The song sold 50 million records worldwide and quickly went to No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Even though she gained a lot of fame thanks to this, she has been around for a long time.
After quite the ride, she took a hiatus to prioritize her family and underwent in-vitro fertilization. When she came back, 2000 - 2010 Celine Dion was the highest-grossing entertainer in the world. She made over $720 million, and only a little bit came from the ticket sales, and by a little, i mean $500 million, and the other $350 million came from her Las Vegas show. Her current net worth is at a whopping $800 Million.
Michael Jackson
The King of Pop, who died in 2009, had one of the most lucrative careers. Every song of his was a success, even when he was in The Jackson 5. Between 1985-1995, Michael was earning around $50 to $100 million per year, thanks to the tours, record sales, endorsements, and merchandise.
To date, the singer has sold over 750 million albums, including the ones sold after his death, which made around 35 million (just one year after his passing). Not only that but his album Thriller sold 66 million copies worldwide. Despite his fortune, Michael was quite bad at managing his money and was in great debt. However, his net worth was at $825 million in 2017. It's crazy to think that he has been making money all these years, long after he passed away!