Forbes recently announced their wealthiest hip-hop artists in 2014 and you will be slightly surprised to see who the top dog is! Dominating the world of hip-hop for the last 30 years, veteran rapper Dr. Dre is showing no signs of giving up the crown as the king of the turntables. The 49-year-old artist originally from Compton, California is at the top of the list with a whopping estimated $620 million. His total estimated pre-tax earnings are more than the combined earnings of no less that 24 names on the list released on Tuesday, September 23.
Top 10 Highest Paid Hip-Hop Artists in 2014
Dre is officially the artist with the highest annual income for an entertainer ever evaluated by Forbes. Some might be curious to know how this is possible if the rapper didn’t release an album or go on a tour in the 12 months from June 2013 to 2014. The huge financial injection came from Apple acquiring the critically acclaimed subscription streaming music service Beats Music, and Beats Electronics, which makes the popular Beats headphones, speakers and audio software. As part of the acquisition, Beats co-founders Jimmy Lovine and Dr. Dre joined the prestigious Apple group. Apple acquired the two companies for a total of $3 billion, consisting of a purchase price of approximately $2.6 billion and approximately $400 million that will vest over time.
It seems nearly trivial to mention the other contenders on the list but hey, not everyone is fortunate enough to be owned by Apple right? Jay-Z and P. Diddy are miles behind in second place with $60 million each, followed by Drake in third place with $33 million. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis follow closely with $32 million in fourth place, and Kanye West round-up the top five with an estimated $30 million. Nicki Minaj is the only female featured on the list in tenth place with a very respectable 14 Million.
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