Pop, hip-hop and R&B stars Justin Bieber, Jay-Z and Beyonce currently rank among the highest-paid musicians of 2012. The trio find themselves on the list of 25 musicians ranked by Forbes just recently, yet none of them are the number one in terms of earnings.
According to Yahoo! that #1 spot goes to none other than Dr. Dre. Thanks mainly to his Best by Dre line of headphones, he banked $110 million over the past year. Dre hasn't had any major studio albums but continues to lend his beat-production skills to numerous artists as well. Following him to round out the top 5 on the list are Roger Waters, Elton John, U2, and former British boy band, Take That, which earned $69 million thanks to their reunion tour.
Justin Bieber finds himself down the list at number 10, tied with country singer Toby Keith. Both of them earned $55 million in 2012, with Bieber the youngest musician on the top 25 list. His bank account continues to swell thanks to his music and merchandise stales. However, Bieber also has stakes in startup companies Tinychat, Stamped, and the music streaming program, Spotify.
To find hip hop's power couple, Jay-Z and Beyonce, one has to go to the #18 spot where Beyonce resides. Even though she had to take time off for having baby Blue Ivy, B continues to earn from her music and other ventures. Those include House of Dereon clothing and deals with companies for endorsements. She earns $40 million which is just $2 million more than Jay-Z who is at the #20 spot. Jay earns from music royalties, touring with Kanye West as Watch the Throne, and deals with companies including Budaweiser and Duracell. Oh, and by the way, he's also a part earner of the NBA's Brooklyn Nets, and the 40/40 Club in New York.
However, it seems the money is in the beats, as even Jay-Z and Beyonce can't out-earn Dr. Dre together with all of their various music, ventures and holdings. Could they possibly eclipse Dre in 2013 if they begin putting out new music and touring more? Beyonce will appear at Superbowl 2013 for the halftime act which could help propel her worth even more.
(Image Source: Wikimedia)
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