JAY-Z has officially reached billionaire status.
According to Forbes, the hip-hop star has accumulated a fortune that conservatively totals $1 billion, making him the first rapper to do so.
Forbes reported that his journey is all the more impressive given its start: Brooklyn’s notorious Marcy housing projects. He was a drug dealer before becoming a musician, starting his own label, Roc-A-Fella Records, to release his 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt. Since then he’s amassed 14 No. 1 albums, 22 Grammy awards and over $500 million in pretax earnings in a decade.
He realized that he should build his own brands rather than promote someone else’s: the clothing line Rocawear, started in 1999 (sold for $204 million to Iconix in 2007); D’Ussé, a cognac he co-owns with Bacardi; and Tidal, a music-streaming service.
According to Forbes, Jay Z is now officially the first hip-hop artist to achieve Billionaire status. pic.twitter.com/EjmivEIVpp
— HIP HOP FACTS (@DailyRapFacts) June 3, 2019
Just In: JAY-Z has become the first billionaire rapper, per @forbes ??????
— Complex Music (@ComplexMusic) June 3, 2019
"Just call me https://t.co/DdGdd8cZs2...In case y'all forgot, New York is still mine." ??
?? https://t.co/J2wltm6sxd pic.twitter.com/AmhrSr8laq
In the latest issue of @Forbes?, we are officially declaring Jay-Z? a billionaire, making him one of only a handful of entertainers to achieve the feat—and the first hip-hop artist to do so. Read more, including a breakdown of his fortune, below: https://t.co/Rz87tTEprv pic.twitter.com/QsZronwTDG
— Zack O’Malley Greenburg (@zogblog) June 3, 2019
