Drake makes Forbes list of wealthy hip-hop artists
Toronto rapper released latest album Views on Friday
Canadian rapper Drake is continuing his ascent in the lofty realm of hip hop moguls, squeaking onto Forbes magazine's latest tally of hip-hop's richest acts.
The financial magazine published The Forbes Five: Hip-Hop's Wealthiest Artists on Tuesday.
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Drake is the first newcomer to and sole Canadian on the list, placing fifth and knocking 50 Cent off his perch.
The full list is:
- Diddy
- Dr. Dre
- Jay Z
- Birdman
- Drake
Last fall, Aubrey Drake Graham placed third — behind Sean (Diddy) Combs and Shawn (Jay Z) Carter — on the Forbes Cash Kings list, the financial magazine's tally of the world's highest-paid rap acts.
That previous and today's achievement stem from touring and from endorsements for Sprite, Nike and Apple.
"That's pretty much my objective every year," Drake told Forbes in 2013, referring to landing on Forbes' lists.
"Other than making good music."
Drake released his latest album, Views, on Friday.
Along with hitting the road to promote it during his Summer Sixteen Tour, the Toronto rapper is also staging his seventh annual OVO Fest concert in his beloved hometown on July 29.
Along with overseeing his OVO-related (October's Very Own) companies — including his record label OVO Sound and OVO clothing line — he is the global brand ambassador for the Toronto Raptors basketball team, opened an exclusive club in the team's Air Canada Centre home stadium, collaborated with Canada Goose on winter coats, co-created a Toronto restaurant called Fring's with celebrity chef Susur Lee and recently introduced a new alcohol brand called Virginia Black Decadent American Whiskey.
He's also an investor in the tech startup Omni, which helps users organize and store their own personal items.
According to Forbes, staffers compile the Forbes Five list by "following the same procedures used to calculate our list of the world's billionaires: looking at past earnings, valuing current holdings, leafing through real estate records and talking to analysts, attorneys, managers, venture capitalists and some of the moguls themselves to find the details."