Lady Gaga
Sometimes it pays to be weird. The Queen Monster grossed $170 million on 137 shows in 22 countries over the past 12 months and has sold an estimated 15 million albums worldwide. No surprise that advertisers want a piece—endorsement deals include Polaroid, Virgin Mobile, Monster Cable, Viva Glam and PlentyOfFish.com. A Russian billionaire reportedly paid $1 million to appear in her “Alejandro” video. Her new album, Born This Way, hit stores in May; the title track clocked one million downloads in five days, making it the fastest-selling song in iTunes history.
Justin Bieber
Though he may not know where Germany is, the cherubic crooner has attained international superstardom: his new album My Life 2.0 quickly attained platinum status, his concert movie Never Say Never grossed $100 million globally and Bieber’s live shows around the world bring in $600,000 in gross ticket sales per night. The music video for Bieber’s hit song “Baby” has been viewed a YouTube record 500 million times.
U2
The ageless rockers are wrapping up the most lucrative tour in the history of music. In April the group’s 360 Tour surpassed the Rolling Stones’ Bigger Bang Tour, which grossed $554 million from 2005 to 2007. By the time U2’s tour ends this summer, the band will have sold $700 million worth of tickets over two years and played to more than 7 million people.
Elton John
Sir Elton has sold 250 million records worldwide over the past 30 years and isn’t slowing down—he grossed $204 million performing 102 live shows in the past 12 months. The Rocket Man still has time for family. With partner David Furnish, he welcomed surrogate son Zachary in 2010. Lady Gaga is the tyke’s godmother.
Taylor Swift
Whether you consider her music country, pop or both, there’s no question that Swift is a moneymaking machine. Her new album Speak Now was certified triple-platinum barely a month after its October release. Touring brings gross ticket sales of some $750,000 per night. Just don’t break her heart: scathing love ballad “Dear John” was rumored to be directed at former flame John Mayer.
Bon Jovi
Who says you can’t go home? Bon Jovi opened New Jersey’s New Meadowlands Stadium with three consecutive sold out concerts last May and another in July. The band grossed $200 million playing 74 shows over the past 12 months and released a greatest hits album. Frontman Jon Bon Jovi was named to the White House Council for Community Solutions by President Obama.
Katy Perry
The "I Kissed A Girl" singer married actor Russell Brand in a traditional Hindu ceremony in India in October. Perry’s album Teenage Dream, released in August, boasted four chart-topping singles—making it one of only nine albums to accomplish that feat in the Billboard Hot 100's 52-year history. No stranger to business, Perry shills for Proactiv, Adidas and Ubisoft, and has her own perfume line, Purr.
The Black Eyed Peas
Their Super Bowl set may have earned them critical scorn but the Peas don’t care. The business-friendly rockers grossed $68 million on 62 shows around the world over the past 12 months and added to their coffers with lucrative endorsement deals with Samsung, Pepsi, Honda, Verizon, Chase and others.
Beyonce Knowles
The Houston-born diva ranks unusually low on our list because she didn’t tour or release an album over the past year. But her fourth solo effort, 4, is on the way. The simple title was reportedly selected by her fans and is also a nod to her April 4 wedding anniversary with hubby Jay-Z. In the absence of new revenue on the music side, business-focused Beyoncé cashes in on clothing line Dereon and endorsement deals with L’Oreal, DirecTV, General Mills and others.
Usher
The R&B heartthrob is credited with discovering Justin Bieber who he performed with at the 2011 Grammys. Usher’s 2004 album Confessions sold 10 million copies in the U.S. alone, making it the No. 2 best-selling album of the ‘00s. His latest was no slouch, either: Raymond v. Raymond was his third consecutive album to debut atop the Billboard charts.
No comments:
Post a Comment