Forbes Magazine has just released their list of the10 highest-paid entertainers in the world in 2022 and collectively they earned $1.35 billion which is actually almost half the revenue generated by the top ten earners in 2021.
Taylor Swift is the only woman on the list and is joined by fellow music solo acts Bad Bunny and Sting as well as the bands the Rolling Stones and Genesis to make up half the list.
The other five on the top ten list are all filmmakers like James Cameron and TV creators, like James Brooks and Matt Groening the duo behind “The Simpsons” and Matt Stone and Trey Parker who created “South Park.”
The majority of this year’s list came from selling a body of work generated over decades such as Sting and Genesis or by creating lucrative licencing deals like Stone and Parker who will generate close to a billion dollars over six years by licencing South Park to Paramount.
While we most likely won’t see Sting or Genesis on this list ever again, artists like Swift, Bad Bunny and the Rolling Stones are on the list exclusively by revenue they generated in a single year without the sale of a major asset.
Here’s the breakdown
10) Bad Bunny – $88 Million – made most of his fortune from his two tours, El Último Tour Del Mundo, and The World’s Hottest Tour. Bad Bunny also boasts endorsement deals with Corona, Cheetos, and Adidas.
9) Taylor Swift – $92 Million – Swift’s income comes from a combination of physical record sales, streaming, digital downloads, and licensing, according to Forbes Not only did Swift break Ticketmaster and the internet when she announced her global tour, her 2022 album “Midnights” has sold 1.8 million copies in the United States alone, according to Billboard.
8) James Cameron – $95 million – From “Avatar: The Way of Water,” according to Forbes. Cameron who is 68-years-old now claims three of the highest-grossing movies of all time, the others being the first “Avatar” in 2009 and “Titanic” in 1997.
7) The Rolling Stones – $98 Million– made over $8.5 million per night on a 15-city tour in Europe in 2022,according to Pollstar.
6) Brad Pitt – $100 Million – Pitt sold the majority of his production company, Plan B Entertainment, to Mediawan in December. In 2022, Pitt who is 59-years old, also starred in the hit films “Bullet Train,””Babylon,” and “The Lost City.”
5) James Brooks and Matt Groening – $105 Million – are the creators of “The Simpsons.” They moved all 30 seasons from FX to Disney+ in April 2019 in a deal that will pay Brooks and Groening $105 million annually after fees, according to Forbes. That’s $100 mill every year!
4) Matt Stone and Trey Parker – $160 Million – are the creators of the animated television show “South Park.” In 2021, they signed an exclusive deal with Paramount guaranteeing them $935 million over six years, according to Forbes.
3) Tyler Perry, 53, – $175 Million – is an American actor, filmmaker, playwright, and entrepreneur. He is the director, writer, and producer of the BET sitcoms “House of Payne,” “Assisted Living,” and “All the Queen’s Men” and is making a killing! Perry happens to be the only billionaire on the list, something I am sure Taylor Swift has her sights on changing.
2) Sting – $210 Million – is the former lead singer of the new wave band The Police, who surpassed the fame and fortune of his former band as a solo artist. Sting has reportedly earned $300 million before fees by selling his entire discography, both solo and with The Police, to Universal Music Group.
1) Genesis – $230 Million – In September 2022, according to Forbes the rock band Genesis sold the rights to some of their music for $300 million to Concord Music Group. The deal included a number of solo albums recorded by the band’s lead singer, Phil Collins.
That’s Entertainment!