Dr. Dre Battles Diddy, Drake, Jay Z, And Kanye West In Cash & Music


Dr. Dre is battling other rappers when it comes to money. On Tuesday, September 22, Forbes released its annual “Hip-Hop Cash Kings” list for the year 2015. Diddy, Drake, Dr. Dre, Jay Z, and Pharrell Williams took over the top five spots.

Diddy beat them all by earning $60 million in the past year. The hip-hop artist earned most of his money from Ciroc vodka, his TV network Revolt, his clothing line Sean John, and his water brand Aquahydrate.

Dr. Dre was No. 3 on the list, after making history in 2014 with $620 million. It was the highest reported payout of any musician to date. He topped the list due to his Beats deal with Apple. Dr. Dre only made $33 million last year, most of which came from his critically acclaimed biopic Straight Outta Compton and his third album, also called Compton. Both of his projects will definitely increase Dre’s earnings for next year.

Straight Outta Compton grossed an estimated $157.5 million in the U.S. and Canada, making F. Gary Gray the highest-grossing black director of a film in North America.

So, who took over the No. 2 and No. 3 spots? That would go to Jay Z and Drake. Jay Z earned $56 million from his On The Run concert tour with wife and powerhouse Beyonce, his record label Roc Nation, and his Armand de Brignac champagne.

Meanwhile, Drizzy earned a cool $39.5 million in the year 2015. He earned most of his money from his 50 concerts, averaging $1 million per night. Drake’s release If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late immediately went platinum that year. He also earned money from his endorsement deals with Nike and Sprite. Last year, Drake was number four on the Forbes list.

Pharrell Williams rounded out the top spot with $32 million. The “Happy” singer earned his income from making music, touring, and judging on NBC’s The Voice. He also has his Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream clothing lines to fall back on.

Dr. Dre is also battling rapper Kanye West, but when it comes to making groundbreaking music. Kanye changed the hip-hop world with the release of his first two albums The College Dropout (2003) and Late Registration (2005). But long before West pushed the envelope with his beats, Dre shaped hip-hop culture with his work with N.W.A. and Marshall Mathers.

Josh Chesler of The Phoenix News Times noted that like Kanye, Dre always had a signature sound in his music, no matter if it’s in the ’90s rap scene or the late 2000s with his highly-anticipated album.

“Dre has always had a signature sound. The moment you hear a song produced by Dre, you know you’re listening to a song produced by Dre. Throughout the late ’80s and ’90s, almost all of Dre’s tracks (particularly his work on his solo debut, 1992’s The Chronic) featured a stabilizing heavy bass line with the iconic sound of his famous synth over it. Dre’s use of samples (both recorded and re-created live) also helped to bring the sound of everyday hip hop from that classic ’80s hip hop sound to what we hear today.”

Also, both Kanye West and Dr. Dre have no problem speaking their minds. Speaking of West, he earned $22 million in the past year, putting him at No. 7 on the Forbes list. Check out the rest of the hip-hop cash kings below.

  1. Diddy – $60 million
  2. Jay Z – $56 million
  3. Drake – $39.5 million
  4. Dr. Dre – $33 million
  5. Pharrell – $32 million
  6. Eminem – $31 million
  7. Kanye West – $22 million
  8. Wiz Khalifa – $21.5 million
  9. Nicki Minaj – 21 million
  10. Birdman – $18 million
  11. Pitbull – $17 million
  12. Lil Wayne – $15 million
  13. Kendrick Lamar – $12 million
  14. J. Cole – $11 million
  15. Snoop Dogg – $10 million
  16. Rick Ross – $9 million
  17. Tech N9ne – $8.5 million
  18. Ludacris – $8 million
  19. T.I. – $6 million
  20. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – $5.5 million

[Image: Jason Kempin/Getty Images]

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