Beyoncé has been named 2014’s top-earning woman in music, doubling her earnings from the year before. With help from a new album, endorsement deals and an international tour, the 33-year-old star grew her fortune by an estimated $115m (£71.8m) in just 12 months.
Forbes reports that 2013-14 was “the biggest year of [Beyoncé’s] career”: a bestselling new album, which is soon to be reissued; clothing and fragrance lines; sponsorships from H&M and Pepsi; and above all a hugely profitable tour. The singer played 95 gigs in the past year, grossing an average of $2.4m (£1.5m) in each city. It’s no wonder that in June, Forbes named her the most powerful celebrity in the world.
Taylor Swift was the year’s second most profiting female musician, earning a career-high $64m (£40m). Bewilderingly, this figure does not include any of the money from Swift’s new record, 1989, which has sold more than 1.5m copies during its first week on sale.
In fact, the sale of music is not particularly important to any of the top-earning female musicians. Of the Forbes list’s top five, only Beyoncé and Katy Perry released albums this year: Swift, Rihanna and Pink earned tens of millions without the benefit of new music. These singers earn the majority of their income from tour-dates and endorsement contracts.
Forbes’s highest-earning female musician of 2013 was Madonna.
Forbes’ five top earning women in music
Beyoncé - $115m
Taylor Swift - $64m
Pink - $52m
Rihanna - $48m
Katy Perry - $40m
