The normal meme is that rappers spent their money on jewellery, big cars and mansions and are generally not in good command of their finances; the list below shows a different story altogether. Forbes put together a list of the wealthiest rappers of 2012 and the numbers are impressive.
When it comes to cash money, Sean “Diddy” Combs is king.
The rapper topped Forbes’ list of wealthiest hip hop artists, beating out Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Bryan “Birdman” Williams and 50 Cent.
According to the magazine, Diddy’s net worth was estimated at $550 million. He can attribute the high figure to his many ventures, including clothing lines Sean John and Enyce and his Bad Boy record label.
Jay-Z landed in second place on Forbes’ list with $460 million. He also has various ventures, as well as investments in the New Jersey Nets and 40/40 night clubs.
At No. 3 was Dr. Dre with $260 million, followed by Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman with $125 million and rapper 50 Cent with a net worth of $110 million.
The list is based on current holdings, past earnings, financial documents and interviews with analysts. (PACE, 2011)
Forbes (Forbes, 2005) is a financial magazine that reports biweekly on investments, marketing, finances and the lucrative, Forbes Richest list. African Americans started appearing on the Forbes’ list recently, with Robert J. Johnson (Miller, 2009) being the first one to make it to the list in 2001.
African Americans rappers are known for ludicrous displays of wealth such as jewellery, cars and large homes, and not necessarily for investments (Brendan, 2009). Rapper Lil Wayne reportedly paid $150 000 to have diamond veneers (Singer-Vine, 2010), Russell Simmons has toilets in his home made of solid gold (Littman, 2009)and rapper Big Boi spent $20 000 on diamond studded Nike shoes (Roc, 2007). However, Robert Johnson certainly paved the way for other African American celebrities to make it to the lucrative list and dispel the label attached to African American rappers of making bad financial decisions.
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Available at: http://beatcrave.com/2009-08-29/13-obnoxious-displays-of-hip-hop-wealth/
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Available at: http://www.forbes.com/
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Littman, M., 2009. Small Business. [Online]
Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-littman/john-thains-35000-toilet_b_162350.html
[Accessed 20 June 2012].
Miller, M., 2009. Business. [Online]
Available at: http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/06/richest-black-americans-busienss-billionaires-richest-black-americans.html
[Accessed 20 June 2012].
PACE, 2011. Forbes Richest Rappers. [Online]
Available at: http://paceworldmedia.blogspot.ca/2011/03/forbes-richest-rappers.html
[Accessed 20 June 2012].
Roc, G., 2007. Articles. [Online]
Available at: http://theshoegame.com/articles/big-bois-50000-diamond-nike-af1-sneakers.html
[Accessed 20 June 2012].
Singer-Vine, J., 2010. News and Politics. [Online]
Available at: http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2010/02/can_lil_wayne_bring_his_teeth_to_prison.html
[Accessed 20 June 2012].
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