Jay-Z Hip-Hop's Top Earner at $35 Million
You gotta hand it to Jay-Z. Despite taking a 57% pay cut -- down from $82 million in 2008 to $35 million in 2009 -- he's still the Hip-Hop Cash King, according to Forbes. (Cash Queens, aka the women, can be found on their own list, which focuses on all women in music, not just in the hip-hop genre.) Diddy squeaks in as the #2 cash king, with $30 million, and Kanye West is #3 with $25 million. Both of these gents also are down several million from last year.
Many of the artists on the Hip-Hop Cash Kings list earn a good chunk of their income through licensing and endorsements, but gone, at least for as long as the economy is uncertain, are one-time mega deals in the $100 million-plus range. This is what knocked 50 Cent out of first place in 2008 down to #4 this year, with "only" $20 million.
In Pictures: Hip-Hop's 20 Top Earners
