Taylor Swift Made More Money Than Anyone Else in Music Last Year
In news that will shock everyone and horrify those who don’t count themselves amongst her fan base, Billboard is reporting that country-pop crooner Taylor Swift made more money than anyone else in music in 2013, to the tune of nearly $40 million. That’s right: forty million dollars.
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Second on the list: Country stud Kenny Chesney, made about $33 million last year. That’s still $7 million less than Taylor.
After Chesney, the numbers dramatically drop. Beyoncé came in at a surprisingly low sixth place, earning about $24.5 million last year. Other somewhat surprising rankings: Justin Bieber in 11th place with about $19 million, Jay Z in 16th place with about $15.5 million, and Rihanna, who came in a truly shocking 20th place with just $13.8 million.
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The reason Taylor made such an insane amount of money last year has to do with several factors: She had a incredibly successful world tour for her album “Red” that reportedly brought in close to $30 million, she signed onto her second contract with mass shoe brand Keds, and 2013 was also the year she signed a contract with Diet Coke, another mass brand, worth an unreported amount that surely reaches into the millions.
Regardless of how you feel about Swift, there’s one thing that must be said of her: she was also officially dubbed the most charitable celebrity of 2013, so at least she gives back some of what she earns. As for us, we’d gladly switch places with Carrie Underwood, who came in dead last in 40th place with “only” $8 million in 2013 earnings. Sounds pretty good to us.
