Redmans rugged yet humorous rhymes and infectious personality make him one of hip-hops most beloved MCs. Its also no surprise that the dearth of live revenue led to a precipitous decline in the paychecks of musics top earners, who collectively took home $387 million in 2020, down from $969 million in 2019. Artists with most songs in the Billboard Top 100 in the U.S. 2012-2021 . 4 in physical album sales after moving 517,000 copies of their recordings. Streaming: $6.6M 1. One of hip-hops most creative visionaries, Missy Misdemeanor Elliott began honing her skills as a rapper, singer, songwriter and producer as a member of the R&B/hip-hop collective Swing Mob in the early 90s with childhood friend/producer Timbaland. talladega high school basketball. Streaming: $3.2M Running down the road for five decades, the Eagles played 10 shows in 2020 that grossed $33 million and netted $11.4 million in income. Touring: $12.4M. 5 in digital track sales (close to 1 million). Dre e ha ottenuto il primo successo due anni pi tardi con il singolo My Name Is. Jada checks off just about every box as a member of hip-hops hall of fame though a bona fide classic solo album from the Yonkers legend could have vaulted him inside this lists top 20. 7 with $35 . 2 on the Billboard 200, and her biggest hit of the year was Lifes a Mess with Juice WRLD, which hit No. And he did all of it as one of the Souths first real rap stars, showcasing lyrical complexity and emotional depth in a region that was once wholly dismissed while also making classic cuts with legends from both coasts, like Jay-Z, Nas and 2Pac. As a result, Metallica placed at No. At 19 years old, Billie Eilish is indestructible. Billboard, on the other hand, is all about the statistics. Touring: $2.5M. Touring: $0. The timeless Ms. Lauryn Hill straddles the line between Motown soul, boom bap, R&B, jazz and rap defying convention and introducing a new standard for genre-bending rappers. Aventura makes its debut on the Money Makers list, totally on the strength of its box office. Streaming: $9.1M 10 in physical sales with 334,000 copies scanned in 2020 47% of those purchases were in the higher-priced vinyl format. Fueled by 744 million web radio plays they were the No. But in fact, his limitations were what made the 25-year-old wunderkind one of the greatest MCs to touch Gods green earth: He knew of his shortcomings, but relied on his voice and motivational messaging to resonate and crack through the toughest gangstas. LLs list of achievements includes being the first rapper to be awarded the prestigious Kennedy Center Honor. Kendrick Lamar. 1. By Devin. Sales: $394.9K Chuck held everyones feet to the fire: crack dealers in the Black community (Night of the Living Baseheads); purveyors of systemic racism (Fight the Power); a ravenous press (Welcome to the Terror) and greedy corporations (Shut Em Down). Touring: $0. Blow may not possess his descendants complex rhyme skills, but he was a star in his own right thanks to a magnetic voice and charismatic stage presence. The single spent seven nonconsecutive weeks at No. Thats a distinguished and also contentious honor when it comes to ranking who or what is the ultimate best, whether youre talking films, TV shows, restaurants or any other subject. His award-winning 2002 biographical film 8 Mile even depicted the Detroit-bred MCs real-life struggle to be accepted as a white rapper in hip-hop, a genre created and dominated by Black people. Touring: $1M. Fat Booty) to the inner-spiritual fight for Black liberation (UMI Says). Her melodic rapping on Doo Wop (That Thing) led to the song becoming the first by a female rapper to top the Hot 100. The Compton native has become one of musics most influential artists thanks to his vivid, thought-provoking and sometimes controversial lyrics, fearless genre experimentation, and agile-yet-masterful flow. Bring the crowd and Im loud in living color/ It is Weezy Fkin Baby, got these rappers in my stomach, Lil Wayne opens his 2005 deep cut, Best Rapper Alive, foreshadowing the years to come. Despite the lack of new music, Ye still generated 2.6 billion in combined streams, which yielded a $3.9 million payday. Jonathan Lyndale Kirk released his third studio album, Blame It on Baby, in April 2020, which debuted atop the Billboard 200 and produced his highest-charting song, Rockstar featuring Roddy Ricch. Revenue from featured artist appearances is credited to the main artists but other recording collaborations usually denoted as a duet with, + or & or X are generally split evenly by the artists. From there, Pusha became a fashion icon and served as president of Wests label, while continuing to release well-received solo albums full of vivid descriptions of his drug hustling and emotional struggles. Sign Up to track. 17 ($9.1 million), Future at No. Grande was 2019s No. Queen, which owns its masters, ranked second in sales royalties with $5.3 million thanks, in part, to the 2020 rerelease of its $500-plus limited-edition colored vinyl Studio Collection box set of the bands 15 studio albums. Fleetwood Macs place on this list is partly due to the viral Ocean Spray TikTok video set to Dreams (and its several homages) that sent the 1977 No. 1 debut of Get Rich or Die Tryin in 2003. YoungBoy Never Broke Again breaks into Money Makers for the first time, due almost entirely to the prodigious number of streams his music generated. Billboard, on the other hand, is all about the statistics. Taylor Swift $23.8 million2. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. After a disappointing debut effort with 2001s Im Serious, T.I. The fledgling labels first album to crack the top 50, Radio spent 38 weeks on the Billboard 200 and claimed platinum status in 1989. Streaming: $5.1M The $5.7 million that she and her brother, FINNEAS, took home from their publishing royalties was tops in the category. 22, $8.2M), Roddy Ricch (No. It's painful and heartbreaking to hear Killer Mike rap, "You so numb you watch the cops choke out a man like me/ Until my voice goes from a . Billboard has officially released its list of the highest-paid music artists in 2020, which shows how hip-hop has dominated as a genre in the last year. Pitbull's early life Amando Christian Prez was born in Miami, Florida on 15th January 1981 to Cuban immigrant parents. He has topped the Billboard charts numerous times in over 20 countries. 3 in track downloads with over 1 million. Like other hip-hop artists, he lags in sales royalties, taking home $161,000. 1. 1, and the second reached No. Bars about investing and saving money? Touring: $0. The band ranked third in physical sales selling 671,000 copies of its albums, 78% of which were vinyl reissues that are priced higher than CDs and thus pay higher royalties. All and all, rappers still made money in 2020 despite the impact of the pandemic on the music industry. Q-Tip, co-founder of the alternative hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest, has been on point for over 30 years. Streaming royalties consist of on-demand audio and video streams plus estimated royalties from programmed satellite, cable and webcasting services like SiriusXM and Music Choice. In a year with little touring, hip-hop/R&B acts dominated . Even Swift, that rare artist with strong sales, streaming and touring numbers, saw her take-home pay drop from $99.6 million in 2018 the last time she was on the list to $23.8 million. Billboard has released its highest-paid musicians of 2020. He can turn the mundane into something sweet (Foldin Clothes) or act out in rebellion (Fire Squad). Other Hip Hop figures include Future at 22 with $8.2 million Roddy Ricch at 24 with $7.4 million, Rod Wave at 25 with $7.4 million, and Kanye West at 30 at $6.6 million. Wave had zero physical sales last year. The Mac amassed 1.8 billion combined streams, including 511 million web radio plays. Her unapologetic tone shattered barriers for women in hip-hop, allowing them to be more sexually expressive and liberated. Sales: $4M Iggy . The shows grossed close to $25.8 million, giving the band almost $8.8 million in take-home pay. Posty . Scott moved up four places in the rankings in 2020, even though his take-home pay in 2019 was $15.5 million. In 2020, Forbes ranked Kohli 66th in their list of the top 100 highest-paid athletes in the world for that year, with estimated earnings of $26 million. Taylor Swift. The art-metal outfit released Fear Inoculum, its first album in 13 years, in late-summer 2019 and played nine 2020 dates behind it before canceling the rest of the tour. 11. 2 in sales and streaming royalties, respectively. Touring: $1M. Jay-Z ($560 million) Music . Eight out of the top 10 artists according to the Nielsen Music mid-year report, are rappers. Sales: $446.8K Strait was one of the few artists who made significant touring income before the pandemic. Touring: $4.3M. The Coming, Rhymes 1996 major label debut album, couldnt have sported a better title to describe his explosive entrance. Lil Baby $11.7 million11. Sales: $89.3K Post Malone $23.2 million3. In addition, that mix also encompasses 50 years of cultural milestones for a genre initially dismissed as a passing fad and now recognized as the industrys market-share leader. The star-studded set was executive produced by Dreamville. Fans couldnt get enough of the weed-smoking, carefree duos debauchery, which culminated in the 2001 cult classic feature film, How High, starring the pair and named after one of their enduring 90s hits. Trump Didn't Sing All The Words To The National Anthem At National Championship Game. He ranked at No. Sales revenue was calculated based on physical/digital albums and track sales. Styles 2019 album, Fine Line, peaked at No. Weve revealed 10 more rappers each week since, with the final top 10 now unveiled below. Collection download grand theft auto v m Latifahs subsequent jump into Hollywood proved to be just as impressive, earning accolades for her television work (Living Single) and an Oscar nod (the 2002 musicalChicago), and making her oneof the first MCs with the star power to prove how deeply a rapper could become embedded in American pop culture, even outside of the world of hip-hop. and 2Pac, show his romantic side on the smash Mary J. Blige collab All I Need and just have fun with Redman on the duos How High films and Blackout! On Public Enemys 1987 Rebel Without a Pause, the seminal groups mighty orator backed by raps archetypal hype man in Flavor Flav made it clear that hip-hop would never be the same. Publishing: $1.2M Alongside Phife, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Jarobi White, ATCQ also part of the Native Tongues collective (Queen Latifah, De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, Monie Love) claimed No. see charts legends His flamboyant rhymes helped him become one of the first West Coast rappers to sign a major deal when he signed with Jive Records in the early 90s. Touring: $0. List of East Coast hip-hop artists (rappers and rap group) The Notorious B. Last years rank: No. 10. Run reinvented himself as a reality star in the 2005 MTV series Runs House. 35 ($5.82 million). Andr emerged as the star of the group for his singular flair; sadly, the duo went their separate ways with fans still yearning for a solo album from him. Want to know what everyone in the music business is talking about. 7 in overall sales royalties with $3.7 million. The first became his 10th consecutive Billboard 200 No. linguistic divergence anthropology; what happened to birk balthazar; laidlaw environmental services inc website; He has definitely earned his place as one of the world's highest-paid rappers, with annual earnings of $21 million in 2020. Billboard's findings are different from last year's Forbes' Highest-Paid Celebrities, which placed . He was the first rapper signed to a major label, created one of hip-hops earliest hits with Christmas Rappin, earned the first gold plaque for a rap single with The Breaks and became the first rapper to embark on a national (and then international) tour. Publishing: $2.6M Sales: $800K Despite the COVID-19 pandemic curtailing chances for any artists to tour in 2020, several big-name rappers still made money through streaming and other means last year.. Sales: $66.4K Streaming: $431K Last years rank: Last years rank: Touring accounted for the $9.6 million more he made then, but the hip-hop artists April 2020 virtual Fortnite concert, Astronomical, which drew 12.3 million concurrent players, boosted his streams by as much as 160% from the day the show was announced (April 20), thanks, in part, to the post-show release of a new single with Kid Cudi, The Scotts. The day after the event, digital downloads of his catalog blew up 1,488% from 2,000 to 34,000. Lil Kims raunchy, vicious rhymes turned hip-hop upside down. The evolution continued with the R&B, psychedelic soul, and pop-infused DAMN. prompted his signing to Eminems Shady Records under Dr. Dres Aftermath Entertainment banner, and was followed by the Billboard 200 No. Sales: $712,500 Rhymes about experiencing a mental health crisis? They accounted for close to 20% of his 4.1 billion combined streaming plays. Other key performance drivers for the beerbongs & bentleys artist include his No. Publishing: $1.7M Billboard has released its highest-paid musicians of 2020. Sales: $4.3M Lil Baby generated over 6.2 billion streams, almost 4.6 million of which were audio, for $9.1 million. has earned three Grammys andseven top five Billboard 200 albums and forged a successful film and TV career. They also placed No .7 in publishing royalties ($2.4 million) because the original members wrote all of their songs. One of hip-hops pioneering polymaths, T.I. We're always a bit suspicious of Forbes highest-paid musician lists, as there seem to be some shenanigans involved with their accounting. Streaming: $6.4M BILLIE EILISH. But, also like Strait, Sheltons box-office appeal earned him his berth on Money Makers. Touring: $0. Sales: $5.2M Wielding words like swords, Wayne is one of the most masterful lyricists of our time, delivering mind-boggling verses for the last quarter century. . She ranks even higher on the Global Money Makers list because of her strong global performance, particularly in streaming. 11 ($10.4M), while Eminem holds down the No. Billboard Quiz. 1 in February 2020, a year in which he also landed five songs in the top 10 of the Hot 100, including his duet with Ariana Grande, Stuck With U, which debuted at No.1. He was featured on Eminems Those Kinda Nights, which peaked at No. The highest-earning musicians, also published as the "highest-paid musicians", have been reported annually by Forbes since at least 1987. Following Taylor Swift, who ranks No. Like many hip-hop artists, his sales royalties were minimal. 6 on last years list. highest paid rappers 2020 billboardkristen wiig daughter. and his solo-headlined studio albums The Chronic and 2001 cant be denied. 8 Tour revenue, after the managers cut, equals 34% of an acts Boxscore. Lil Baby rounds out the top 10 with $11.7 million. His fourth studio album had the makings of a bonafide classic with incredible singles (How Do You Want it, California Love, & I Aint Mad at Cha) and superior production and it reigned for eight weeks at No. In 2020, hip-hop came on strong because its artists often have a strong streaming game. Between his Geto Boys tenure in the late 80s and his illustrious solo career stretching through the 2010s, Scarface laid bare the pitfalls of street life by presenting a stoic, pragmatic approach to hustling that differed from the flashy images glamorized by other artists. In 2020, Elliott ranked No. Those shows gaveTool almost $4.2 million in take-home pay, the eighth-highest live earnings for the year and the bulk of the acts income. That dollar total was also boosted by fans preference for vinyl copies of the bands albums, which accounted for 72% of physical sales. The embattled rapper finished at No. Published by on 30 junio, 2022 1 album, My Turn, which landed 12 songs simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 2020, vaulted him to No. Reviving gangsta rap in the process, Get Rich also nabbed a stunning nine-times platinum RIAA certification. It was one of five songs she landed on the chart that year: Three were collaborations, with Marshmello (Be Kind), Machine Gun Kelly (Forget Me Too) and Kelsea Ballerini (The Other Girl), while the fourth was her country-flavored solo track, You Should Be Sad, which peaked at No. His prolific output resulted in almost 3.7 billion U.S. audio streams, the 10th-largest in the category, and 4.7 billion combined streams, which netted him $6.8 million in royalties and secured him the No. Shot and killed in a highway Tripple Beanz. Big Daddy Kane was an early rap star archetype thanks to his show-stealing performances in the late 1980s. Bolstered by two mammoth deals with luxury giant LVMH and Jack Dorsey's Square, Jay-Z has lapped the competition to become the highest-paid rapper of 2021; and as per Rolling Stone, the 2nd highest-paid musician behind Bruce Springsteen and his US$590 million / AU$811.9 million music catalogue sale.. Hip-hop's first billionaire managed to rake in a grand total of US$470 million / AU$646.75 . Pandemic-induced isolation led to Bad Bunnys most successful year yet, yielding three albums, including the best-selling Latin album in the United States and Spotifys most globally streamed album of 2020, YHLQMDLG. Drizzy Drake Rogers forecasted his superstar climb when he was Wheelchair Jimmy on the popular 00s teenage show Degrassi: The Next Generation. Publishing: $1.5M Once a tag-along member in Digital Underground, Pacs larger-than-life demeanor became too big to shelter. In 2020, Forbes reported that the English singer-songwriter received $64 million from his singing activities. Outside of the top 10, The Weeknd ranks at No. And Kanes skill set remains sharp, whether hes tackling police brutality on his 2020 cut Enough or reeling off a fantastic guest cameo on mentee Busta Rhymes 2022 song Slap.. Publishing: $1.3M 39 This year, the group almost doubled that number. Lamar first gained local attention as teen rapper K.Dot through various mixtapes before releasing his first studio album on indie label Top Dawg Entertainment, 2011s Section.80. Buoyed by his first Billboard 200 No. His most potent project came when he released his double-disc album All Eyez On Me the next year. Drizzy is at No. Sales: $874.7K The top ten earners of 2021 banked more than $1 billion, nearly double their pre-pandemic 2019 haul. Basic Statistic Highest-paid women in . After signing with Dr. Dres Interscope imprint Aftermath Entertainment a year later, Lamar hit the ground running with second studio album good kid, m.A.A.d City becoming an instant creative and cultural force. Last years rank: Even the title of the original queen of raps 1988 seminal debut album, Lyte as a Rock, was metaphorically heavy. Publishing: $1.8M He showcased his genuine connection to fans by rapping over a YouTube producers J. In 1987, MC Lyte bumrushed her way into hip-hops boys club with a throat-grabbing voice and dynamic lyricism that seemed well beyond her 16 years. When he partnered with fellow Long Island native Eric B., they became the mighty DJ and MC combo Eric B. Featuring Lamars first solo No. Aventura $10.2 million13. Despite teasing a July release for a new album named after his mother, Donda, West dropped just one song in 2020, Nah Nah Nah, which was tied to his unsuccessful presidential run, and a remix that featured DaBaby and 2 Chainz. / 07.19.2021. Plus, his songs were both fun and relatable: The Breaks cleverly recounted bad days; Christmas Rappin still rings true as a holiday jam; and If I Ruled the World showcased raps early aspirations. (Billboard counts her siblings share as part of the artists revenue base.) Ludacris became Atlantas first crossover superstar of the 2000s, dominating theairwaves and the clubs with an arsenal of Dirty South anthems at his disposal, coupled with his uniquely charismatic twang. The group also generated over 1.8 billion streams, which is impressive for a rock band. Get weekly rundowns straight to your inbox, A daily briefing on what matters in the music industry. The highest-paid hip-hop artists of 2021 have been revealed and JAY-Z and Kanye West once again top the list. Unfortunately, the same demons that bore his provocative art led to his unfortunate demise: he died of a cocaine-induced heart attack in 2021. 1 spot on the list and because of the pandemic had little influence over the ranking in general. 10 in 2020 physical album sales with 402,000 copies scanned, helped by the deluxe box set rerelease of its concert film and album, Delicate Sound of Thunder. The Greatest of All Time, aka the GOAT. Prior to that in 2016, Mane scored his first Hot 100 No. Touring: $0. 22 . After Bun proved his chops as a solo artist with Pimp C behind bars, UGK reunited to craft its magnum opus with 2007s Billboard 200-topping Underground Kingz, released just months before Pimp Cs death at 33 in 2007. However, after the murder of the groups DJ Scott La Rock, he shifted to socially conscious rap aimed at empowering Black people and resolving the ills plaguing inner-city communities. DaBaby $9.1 million18. In a year with little touring, hip-hop/R&B acts dominated streaming sales and accounted for nearly a third of the 40 artists on the list, including four in the top 10Drake, Post Malone, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, and Lil Baby. Last years rank: Recorded-music totals are the sum of an artists sales, streaming and publishing earnings for 2020. In 2015, she earned $154 million and was named Forbes' highest-earning . Lil Waynes cultural, sonic and lyrical influence will forever be embedded into the fabric of hip-hop, by way of his talent as both an artist and as an A&R. However, the Port Arthur native born Bernard James Freeman twangy flow ended up being far more influential than his initial underground career aspirations. The combined royalties from those streams add up to just shy of $10 million, which makes him the fourth top-earner in that category. Streaming: $3.2M Under his now-retired moniker Mos Def, Brooklyn native Bey broke into the underground scene on Rawkus Records influential 1997 compilationSoundbombingwith a charismatic presence that recalled the early 80s chief rocker days of Busy Bee Starski. Ever since signing to Roc Nation, Meek Mill has become more passion-driven and has ventured into business. Touring: $17M. The act made another $1.33 million from the 785.6 million combined streams it amassed, which is typical for a group whose fans have been slow to adopt streaming. His $66,400 in sales royalties came entirely from digital downloads. While the pandemic had a disastrous effect on touring revenue, it lifted other royalty streams as music fans listened to more recorded music from the relative safety of their homes, through radio, streaming platforms or the turntable setups they bought with the money they ordinarily would have shelled out for concerts and festivals. Additionally, he earned $126,000 in sales and $129,000 in touring before the pandemic. Streaming: $2.2M The haunted hip-hop persona of Nayvadius DeMun Wilburn scored his seventh Billboard 200 No. Five No. Even with those shiny accomplishments, its Nasir Jones longevity and adaptability that make him a one-of-a-kind specimen. Hip-hop artists remain music's top money makers. But like King James, he relished the pressure, releasing his seismic debut album Illmatic in 1994 a quintessential hip-hop opus that transcended the genre and became the Holy Bible for every budding lyricist. Sales: $564K Publishing: $1.3M Music in 2010 and kicking off the label relationship with a guest feature on Runaway from Kanye Wests My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy that same year. Even after his death, Pacs legacy pushed forward with seven posthumous albums (including three Billboard 200-toppers), induction into the Rock Hall of Fame, and even a spot in the Library of Congress National Recording Registry (for Dear Mama) and despite his short life and career, Pacs legacy continues to resonate today as much as any rapper CL. Poet, actor, activist, and rapper Tupac Amaru Shakur was the ultimate polymath in the 90s. With unapologetically controversial and macabre (yet frequently hilarious) bars and unparalleled rhyme schemes and syncopation, hes relished playing the role of raps supervillain. A defining byproduct of raps blog era, J. Cole made a name for himself with celebrated mixtapes like 2007s The Come Up, 2009s The Warm Up and 2010s Friday Night Lights. He received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, the highest sporting honor in India, in 2018. 3 in 2020 digital album sales (295,000 copies) and No. Future also rereleased three classic mixtapes from the mid-2010s, Beast Mode, 56 Nights and Purple Reign, which contributed to 4.4 billion combined streams that paid $6.4 million in royalties. A year with minimal touring resulted in top-streaming acts, many of them hip-hop artists, replacing the rock and country acts that fill arena and stadiums on Billboard's annual ranking. Touring: $0. Click to reveal In 2020, however, they played 20 shows to 215,000 fans behind their 2019 No. This year's top 5 highest-paid musicians on a worldwide scale encompass a variety of genres that may stun you. In 1991, Large Professor tossed him an alley-oop on Main Sources posse cut Live at the Barbeque, and Escobar delivered a rim-rocker of a performance. The other two were Las Que No Iban a Salir and his first Billboard 200 No. 1 album since 1982. Sales: $1.3M Touring: $0. 1 Billboard 200 albums and three RIAA-certified Diamond singles (Lose Yourself, Love the Way You Lie and Not Afraid), his unprecedented commercial success makes for one of the most noteworthy rags-to-riches tales in popular music. Few lyricists possess the dexterity to pull off a brilliant allegory about the history of hip-hop on I Used to Love H.E.R. while also firing off a savage takedown of a fearsome Ice Cube on The Bch In Yoo, and then later becoming a Grammy-nominated hitmaker on The Light. And in 2017, Common became the first rapper to get the first 3/4 of the way to an EGOT by winning an Emmy (Letter to the Free, from 13th), Grammy (Love of My Life with Erykah Badu) and Oscar (Glory with John Legend, from Selma).