Jay-Z maintains “richest rapper” title as Kanye and Dre slip

Home*Cover Story*Entertainment

Jay-Z maintains “richest rapper” title as Kanye and Dre slip

Jay-Z remains the wealthiest rapper while the list of top 5 richest rappers has gotten a shake-up

Longtime Forbes writer Zack O’Malley Greenburg recently posted his “remix” of the Hip-Hop’s Wealthiest Artists list on his Zogblog, in which he revealed that Jay-Z remains atop the list as rap’s only certified billionaire.

Greenburg estimates that Hov’s riches have increased to a personal-best $1.5 billion thanks to a diversified portfolio that includes investments in everything from music (Roc Nation entertainment) to real estate, spirits  and startups including Rihanna’s wildly successful Savage X Fenty brand.

Hip-hop’s first billionaire easily edged out Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, whose $1 billion fortune has reportedly surged thanks to his Ciroc vodka brand, half-stake in DeLeón tequila and entertainment brand Revolt, as well as his music catalog, start-up investments and what Greenburg dubbed, “a considerable collection of worldly possessions.”

Kanye West, despite losing almost two thirds of his wealth and going from a billionaire to a millionaire in recent weeks, still came in at No. 3 thanks to his 5% stake in ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s lucrative Skims shapewear line and the rights to his master recordings and music publishing.

The biggest surprise on the list was the new No. 4: Bay Area rapper Gilbert “Berner” Milam, whose 30% stake in the Cookies cannabis empire — which sells 70 weed strains and thousands of marijuana-related products in 48 stores in 7 countries and 20 U.S. states — is the foundation of his fortune.

The top 5 is rounded out by another former billionaire, Dr. Dre whose wealth has decreased after a combination of personal and philanthropic spending reduced his fortune to around $400 million.

COMMENTS

WORDPRESS: 0
DISQUS: 0