Nipsey Hussle Among ‘Forbes’ Top-Earning Dead Celebrities List
The late Nipsey Hussle made the Forbes list of “Top-Earning Dead Celebrities of 2019.” Last year, the “Victory Lap” rapper earned $11 million, which put him at number 10 on the list.
Back in March, Nipsey Hussle was fatally shot outside of his apparel store Marathon Clothing in Los Angeles. According to Forbes, the store has raked in more money posthumously than it did when Nipsey Hussle was alive.
In addition to the Marathon Clothing, Hussle’s music has earned 1.8 billion streams over the last year, putting Nipsey Hussle among the top three most-streamed artists, dead or living.
Nipsey Hussle owned all of his music, which allowed him to monetize his streaming power while alive and after death. Nipsey Hussle’s two young children, Emani and Kross are the beneficiaries of the rapper’s estate.
Nipsey Hussle was the latest edition to the Forbes list of 13 dead celebrities in entertainment. Coming in at the 11th spot, XXXTEntacion earned $10 million over the last year. The Florida rapper was fatally shot in 2018. He continues to reign as the most-streamed dead artist, according to Forbes. However, his streams took a 27% decrease from the last year.
(Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Whitney Houston also landed at the 11th spot with $9.5 million in earnings. Some of Houston’s earnings came from the $7 million sale of half of her estate in May alongside the success of Kygo’s spin on Houston’s single “Higher Love.”
Prince was also included in the roster, landing at no. 9 with $12 million. The Purple One’s music sold over 300,000 physical copies in addition to raking in half-a-billion streams over the last year.
Reggae icon Bob Marley landed in the top 5 with $20 million. The “Buffalo Soldier” singer’s music earned almost a billion in streams in the United States alone. In addition to that, the House of Marley brand, which sales turntables, headphones, and sneakers continues to garner revenue.
Michael Jackson performs during the Halftime show, 1993.
The King of Pop, Michael Jackson topped the list. It’s the seventh year in a row for the legendary artist. He raked in $60 million. Part of that came from a reported 2.1 billion in streams in the U.S. and a multi-million dollar deal with Sony.
