Photo: Kevin Mazur (Getty Images)
For the first time since Forbes has been forming the list ot the wealthiest hip-hop artists on the planet, Brooklyn music mogul Jay-Z tops the rankings, in front of old competitor P Diddy. Jay-Z’s net worth grew for $90 million dollars in the last year to a total of $900 million, a year which saw him bought two properties with $114 million of combined value with his wife Beyonce.
The main reason for Jay-Z’s high ranking is the rise of interest on Armand de Brignac champagne and D’Ussé cognac, and the nine-figure ownership stakes in his Roc Nation entertainment empire, and Tidal streaming service. We’ll have to wait and see how his dabbling in cryptocurrency waters went.
Diddy lost the first place and the pole position in the race for the one billion mark, but he still made more money through his stakes in DeLeón tequila, despite his more famous vodka business Ciroc encountering speed bumps.
The two first-place men on the list are not only the wealthiest hip-hop artists on the planet, they are also the richest American musicians of any genre!
Dr. Dre ranks at number three with a net worth value of $770 million, but he can leapfrog both Jay-Z and Diddy as he is in line to receive Apple stock worth over $100 millions this summer. Of course, all depending on the tech giant’s share price at the moment.
There’s a big drop to the shared fourth-spot as both Eminem and Drake have $100 million to their names. While Drake is more focused on the business aspect of his life and has stated that appearing on this list is a part of his goal besides making music, Eminem hasn’t been wildly intrested in making investments. But it pays of to be the best-selling rapper of all time and selling more albums in the U.S. during the 2000s than any artist in any genre.
