Rapper Jay-Z is officially the first hip hop artiste to become a billionaire.
American magazine Forbes has declared Jay z hit the billionaire mark after building an empire based on music, property, fashion
and investments.
The US magazine has estimates that the rapper’s wealth now “conservatively totals” $1billion.
Forbes says the father of three has succeeded because he built brands rather than just endorsed them.
Forbes has also rejected claims that rapper and producer Dr Dre had reached billionaire status.
Jay Z hit fame in 1996 with his debut album Reasonable Doubt.
His 2001 album The Blueprint was in March added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry because it was deemed
“culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Forbes said it had estimated Jay-Z’s wealth by adding various assets and then “subtracting a healthy amount to account for a
superstar lifestyle”.
Jay’s superstar wife is reportedly worth about $335m, made mostly from music and endorsements, and the couple have had
a joint net worth over $1bn for several years.
Jay z’s own’s:
– A $75m music catalogue
– Stakes in Armand de Brignac champagne and D’Usse cognac, worth $410m in total
– A stake in Uber worth about $70m
– Property in fashionable parts of New York and Los Angeles
– A $100m stake in the music streaming service Tidal
– An art collection valued about $50m
