Despite selling Beats to Apple in late 2014, executive producing Straight Outta Compton, and releasing the critically acclaimed Compton, Dr. Dre only managed to come in at #4 on Forbes’ 2015 “Hip Hop Cash King” List (down from the top spot in 2014).
Diddy topped the list with $60 million, though his capital was mostly from entrepreneurial ventures, including his Sean Jean clothing line, and investments in the Revolt Network, Aquahydrate Alkaline Water, and Ciroc Vodka.
Jay Z comes in at #2 with $56 million, benefiting from the highly lucrative On The Run tour with Beyonce, as well as his ventures with Roc Nation and investment in Armand de Brignac champagne. (Could he have topped the list had Tidal been more successful?)
Drake’s #3 spot with $33 million is also mostly from concert revenue, but also accounts for the commercial success of If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late, as well as endorsements from Nike and Sprite.
Unfortunately and unsurprisingly, Nicki Minaj is the only woman to crack the list (let alone the Top 10), coming in at #9 with $19 million from touring, and endorsements from Pepsi, OPI nail products, and Myx Moscato.
The ranking is formulated by considering “pretax income from touring, record sales, streaming, publishing, merchandise sales, endorsements and other business ventures” between June 2014 and June 2015.
The complete list can be viewed at Forbes.