Move Over: Beyoncé Knowles Tops Forbes’ List As Highest Earning Celebrity

Despite Beyoncé Knowles’ alleged marriage troubles it looks like she still has a lot to celebrate. Forbes just released their annual top earning list, and Beyoncé has topped the list at number one, making no mistake that she was the artist to beat in 2014.

Towards the end of 2013 when Billboard was all finished with wrapping up their best of lists, Beyoncé Knowles made history as one of the first artists to launch an album without any promotion.

Additionally, her album, which was simply titled Beyoncé, acted as an exclusive digital release for iTunes. That’s not all as the album also acted as a visual experience for listeners, as each song was accompanied by a full production video. It pushed forward to make a statement about how music lovers developed their relationships to albums in the 21st century, and even changed the way we look at albums as a physical entity.

This coupled with her successful solo tour made Beyoncé Knowles the woman on top when it came to her rebranding and pulling in buckets of money. Even before Forbes’ list Beyoncé Knowles was already known as one of the most powerful and influential celebrities because of her body of work, but now it’s official as we have a glimpse of what that looks like on paper. This is a significant movement in Beyoncé Knowles’ empire as it’s the first time she’s topped the list since 2004.

The singer pulled in $115 million in 2014. The run down of the list is as follows. B-baller LeBron James made $72 million, Dr. Dre made $620 million, next in line is Oprah Winfrey with $82 million, followed by Ellen DeGeneres with $70 million, Jay Z at $60 million, Floyd Mayweather with $105 million, Rihanna at $48 million, Katy Perry with $40 million, and Robert Downey Jr. who rounded out the top ten with $75 million.

In Beyoncé Knowles’ field newcomers include Bruno Mars, Pharrell Williams, Avicii, and One Direction.

In a CNN interview with Piers Morgan Beyoncé spoke about fame and money.

“Being a female people are a lot more aggressive. I can’t complain. If that’s the worst of my life then –. When you really think about it I don’t think it’s great to complain much in regardless of what you do. I’m able to do some many wonderful things, I have to weigh it out. I make really great money. I make a great living, so if I have to sacrifice some of my privacy, it is what it is.”

To see the full roundup click here.