Taylor Swift has surpassed Rihanna as the richest female musician in the world. According to Forbes, her net worth is recognized as $1.6 billion.
Demand for the “Love Story” performer’s Eras tour and the value of her music catalog helped usher her into billionaire status in October 2023.
Swift is the first musician named to the billionaire list primarily based on her songs and performances. This includes nearly $600 million amassed from royalties and touring, plus a music catalog worth an estimated $600 million and some $125 million in real estate.
According to Bloomberg in 2003, Swift’s 53 US concerts added an estimated $4.3 billion to the country’s gross domestic product with impact from income tax, tour production and travel costs, and commissions paid to managers and agents.
Rihanna previously held the number-one spot with a net worth of $1.4 Billion. According to Forbes, her wealth is largely due to her ventures outside of music, notably her cosmetics line Fenty Beauty, which doubled its revenue in 2022.
Additionally, she owns a 28% stake in the Savage x Fenty lingerie line, which raised $125 million in a funding round in January 2022.
The annual celebrity billionaires list released by Forbes in April 2024 included several familiar names including Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, JAY-Z, Tiger Woods, and LeBron James.
Star Wars director George Lucas stands as the world’s richest celebrity. Holding the status since 1997, his current net worth is reported as $5.5 billion.