Forbes has unveiled its list for The World’s Highest-Paid Hip-Hop Acts 2018.
Rapper JAY-Z clinched the No. 1 spot with a whopping $76.5 million, soaring past last year’s No. 1, Sean “Diddy” Combs, who lands at No. 2 with $64 million.
Kendrick Lamar sits in the No. 3 spot with an impressive $58 million. From his endorsement deals with Nike and American Express to sold-out dates on the TDE: Championship Tour and among others paid off for him.
Drake in at No. 4 with $47 million and J. Cole rounds out the Top 5 with $35.5 million, while Dr. Dre and Nas are tied for No. 6 with $35 million.
This is the first time Nas has made the list since emerging with Illmatic in 1994.
DJ Khaled lands at No. 11 with $27 million, Travis Scott at No. 15 with $21 million, Lil Uzi Vert at No. 17 with $19.5 million and Logic at No. 19 with $17 million.
While Russ, Swizz Beatz and Meek Mill are tied at No. 20 with $15 million.
According to Forbes, their list tracks pretax annual income from touring, record sales, streaming, publishing, merchandise sales, endorsements and other business ventures. Management, agent and attorney fees are not deducted. Earnings are calculated from June 2017 to June 2018 and based on data from Nielsen SoundScan, Pollstar, Songkick, Bandsintown, the RIAA and interviews with managers, lawyers, executives and many of the artists themselves.
