Hip-hop artists remain music’s top money makers.
Billboard has released its highest-paid musicians of 2020. In a year with little touring, hip-hop/R&B acts dominated streaming sales and accounted for nearly a third of the 40 artists on the list, including four in the top 10—Drake, Post Malone, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, and Lil Baby.
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Following Taylor Swift, who ranks No. 1 with $23.8 million, Post Malone moves up to No. 2 after placing No. 6 on last year’s list. He earned $23.2 million, of which $12.4 million is from touring prior to the pandemic shutdown. He also remains a streaming giant with $8.1 million in overall royalties, plus an additional $2 million from publishing.
Although he has yet to release his long-awaited album Certified Lover Boy, Drake continues to put up big numbers, landing at No. 6 with $14.2 million. He remains the overall most-streamed act with almost 8 billion streams, accounting for $11.7 million, only second to Taylor Swift in streaming royalties.
For the first time, YoungBoy Never Broke Again scores a spot on the top Money Makers at No. 9 with $11.9 million. He earned $10 million in combined streaming royalties including over 1.4 billion in video streams, 6.2 billion in audio streams, and almost 7 billion in overall combined streams.
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Lil Baby rounds out the top 10 with $11.7 million. His streaming figures accounted for $9.1 million, thanks to his chart-topping album My Turn, for which 12 songs simultaneously charted on the Billboard Hot 100. He earned an additional $2.2 million from publishing and $253,000 from two concerts.
Outside of the top 10, The Weeknd ranks at No. 11 ($10.4M), while Eminem holds down the No. 14 spot ($9.7M). Other acts in the top 30 include Lil Uzi Vert (No. 15, $9.5M), DaBaby (No. 17, $9.1M), Future (No. 22, $8.2M), Roddy Ricch (No. 24, $7.4M), Rod Wave (No. 25, $7.37M), and Kanye West (No. 30, $6.3M).
