“Empire State of Mind” rapper Jay-Z is now the richest man in hip-hop, a report by Forbes has revealed. This means that Hov is now the 1,209th wealthiest person on earth.
The report published on Friday said the rapper’s net worth almost doubled in the last year, but while it has not given any details about what accounts for it, fans of the rapper are musing that his recent Bacardi lawsuit over his D’Usse brand might account for the eye-popping jump in his net worth.
The report does allude to Jay-Z’s business acumen in recent times that far surpasses his musical record as one of the most commercially successful rappers of all time.
“Even in a year without a tour or album release, Jay-Z mints millions from his Armand de Brignac champagne and D’Usse cognac,” the report said. “The Brooklyn-born rapper was crowned hip-hop’s first billionaire by Forbes in 2019, thanks to a sprawling and diversified empire.”
The report mentioned the rapper’s income from his Roc Nation management company which houses artists like Megan Thee Stallion, Rihanna, Alicia Keys, Big Sean, J. Cole, and many others, as well as sports empire, fine-art and even past deals like Tidal which pushed his net worth up significantly before the D’Usse deal.
Last month, Jay-Z hit the payday jackpot after Bacardi settled the rapper’s lawsuit and bought out the majority stake worth $750 million. Still, the artist holds a significant stake in the multimillion-dollar brand.
Last year, Forbes said Jay-Z’s net worth was 1.5 billion, which included his brand Armand de Brignac champagne, cash, investments and art, his stake in Uber, the D’Ussé cognac deal, earnings from Tidal streaming service, Roc Nation, his music catalog, and some real estate he holds.
The rapper’s shift to the top of the ladder comes following Kanye West’s downfall after his Yeezy deal with Adidas was canceled, plummeting his net worth to fall below the billion-dollar mark. Kanye West had proclaimed himself to have a seven billion net worth, but Forbes reported it was just over one billion.
