S. Samuel
Just over a week after Dr. Dre found himself in Forbes' highest-paid celebrities top five list, the music mogul now topples his competition in the financial publication's annual Hip-Hop Cash Kings rundown.
Dre’s $110 million nearly doubled Diddy and Jay-Z‘s totals combined.
With $110 million in pretax earnings, Dr. Dre is this year’s Hip-Hop Cash King–despite the fact that his long-awaited album, Detox, remains on the shelf. He’s not the only one on the list who banks the bulk of his bucks outside the recording studio. Diddy ranks No. 2 with $45 million, thanks mostly to a share of profits from Diageo’s Ciroc vodka; Jay-Z ranks third with $38 million, pulling in more than half his annual earnings from ventures including ownership stakes in cosmetics company Carol’s Daughter, the Brookyln Nets and a joint venture with battery maker Duracell. (Forbes)
The Top 20 list included familiar faces and newcomers like indie rap veteran Tech N9ne.
1. Dr. Dre – $110 million 2. Diddy – $45 million 3. Jay-Z – $38 million 4. Kanye West – $35 million 5. Lil Wayne – $27 million 6 Drake – $20.5 million 7. Birdman – $20 million 8. Nicki Minaj – $15.5 million 9. Eminem – $15 million 10. Ludacris – $12 million 11. Pitbull – $9.5 million 12. Rick Ross – $9 million (tie) 12. Wiz Khalifa – $9 million (tie) 14. Snoop Dogg – $8.5 million 15. 50 Cent – $7.5 million 16. Swizz Beatz – $7 million (tie) 16. Pharrell – $7 million (tie) 16. Young Jeezy – $7 million (tie) 19. Mac Miller – $6.5 million 20. Akon – $6 million 20. Timbaland – $6 million 20. Tech N9ne – $6 million (Rap-Up)
Last week, the Doc’s bank account earned him a spot in Forbes‘ Top 5 highest-paid celebrities list.
Despite wrapping up her talk show in May 2011, Oprah Winfrey is still managing to stay on top. The media mogul is No. 1 on Forbes’ annual list of highest-paid celebrities. Director Michael Bay is second on the list, earning an estimated $160 million, thanks in large part to “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” which brought in $1.1 billion at the box office. Steven Spielberg had a big year in television with four new shows. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer comes in fourth at $115 million; his “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” was one of the highest-grossing films last year. Dr. Dre rounds out the top five, earning $110 million. (Zap 2 It)
Once again, his popular Beats By Dre headphones brand gave him the edge.
The ageless super-producer’s latest hit isn’t a song, but rather a line of headphones. In August handset maker HTC paid $300 million for a 51% stake in Beats by Dr. Dre, the headphone company he co-founded with Interscope chief Jimmy Iovine in 2006. Each owned about a third of the company, pocketing about $100 million apiece, before taxes, from last summer’s deal. (Forbes)
