Diddy on his way to becoming hip hop’s first billionaire, with Jay-Z not far behind

Photo: Daniela Federici for Billboard

Topping the 2017 Forbes Five list of the wealthiest hip hop artists for the seventh year in a row, Diddy looks on his way to becoming hip hop’s first billionaire.

The US business magazine estimated his fortune to be worth US$820 million, not just from royalties from his albums but from movie appearances as Muppets Most Wanted (2014) and Get Him To The Greek (2010) and business partnerships too.

His portfolio includes Revolt, Diageo’s Ciroc, alkaline water Aquahydrate and DeLeon tequila, as well as a stake in the Revolt TV network which he founded in 2013.

Last year Diddy was ranked #22 on Forbes list of all highest-paid celebrities, with estimated annual earnings of $62 million.

Jay-Z is the second wealthiest hip hop star after his fortune jumped 30% to $810 million, boosted by Sprint investing $200 million in his Tidal streaming service to make it a $600 million platform.

His other companies, such as Roc Nation and his Armand de Brignac (Ace of Spades) champagne also continue to prosper. 

This is the first time since 2014 that Jay-Z has outranked Dr. Dre, who’s in third spot with $740 million. The Beats by Dre founder is still riding high after his $3 billion Apple deal in 2014.

Forbes put producer Birdman at #4 with $110 million. 

Drake was in fifth spot again (he knocked out 50 Cent last year) with $90 million. This was due to spectacular record revenue, touring and deals with Apple, Nike and Sprite.