Forbes has released their annual rundown of hip-hop’s highest paid entertainers. This year’s Hip-Hop Cash Kings list has familiar names but with different rankings. Diddy took the top spot this year with $60 million thanks to Sean John, Revolt TV, his water brand Aquahydrate and Ciroc vodka. Jay Z came in the second spot earning $56 million over the past year due to touring with his wife, Beyonce, his Roc Nation management company and his deal with Armand de Brignac champagne.
Drake made the highest debut of his career on the list and even snagged a higher spot than Dr. Dre, who topped the list last year. Touring gave Drizzy the financial boost, grossing almost $1 million a night during his last tour. Sales from his surprise project, If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, and endorsement deals with Sprite and Nike also helped him bring in some extra coins.
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Though Dre came in at no. 1 last year with $620 million, he slid down to the no. 4 slot this year due to his checks from Apple not being as fruitful. Though he released an album, Compton, and produced the highest grossing musical biopic ever, Straight Outta Compton, that won’t reflect on his income until next year’s list.
Peep the full list below.
- Diddy – $60 million
- Jay Z – $56 million
- Drake – $39.5 million
- Dr. Dre – $33 million
- Pharrell – $32 million
- Eminem – $31 million
- Kanye West – $22 million
- Wiz Khalifa – $21.5 million
- Nicki Minaj – 21 million
- Birdman – $18 million
- Pitbull – $17 million
- Lil Wayne – $15 million
- Kendrick Lamar – $12 million
- J. Cole – $11 million
- Snoop Dogg – $10 million
- Rick Ross – $9 million
- Tech N9ne – $8.5 million
- Ludacris – $8 million
- T.I. – $6 million
- Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – $5.5 million