Taylor Swift, an American singer and global sensation, has reached billionaire status, according to Forbes magazine.
The 34-year-old pop star has amassed 1.1 billion US dollars (£875 million) in profits from her Eras Tour and the value of her pop music catalogue.
“Swift is the first musician to hit 10-figure status solely based on her songs and performances,” Forbes said.
The V&A is looking for a Taylor Swift superfan. Taylor Swift has made more than a billion dollars from her recent tour (Ian West/PA).
Barbadian singer Rihanna topped the list because of her beauty business, while Beyonce’s husband, musician Jay-Z, became hip-hop’s first billionaire in 2019 thanks to his fine art collection, music, and shares in companies and drinks brands.
According to the business journal, Swift’s net worth is estimated to be around $500 million (£398 million) from royalties and touring, as well as a similar sum from the value of her musical works. Her property holdings generates an additional 125 million dollars (£99 million).
She joins French luxury company LVMH owner Bernard Arnault, who is the world’s wealthiest person with around 233 billion dollars (£185 billion).Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, ranked second on Forbes’ list with an estimated 195 billion dollars (£155 billion).Amazon founder Jeff Bezos came in third, followed by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg in fourth, and Oracle software cofounder Larry Ellison in fifth position.
AI safety summit Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX (Kirsty Wigglesworth/PA)
Following Swift’s recent music performances, which began in March 2023, she became the first artist to earn one billion dollars (£800 million), breaking the Guinness World Record for the highest-grossing music tour.
The concert film, based on her tour, also generated Vue International’s highest ticket sales at the UK and Ireland box office on its opening day.
She also became the world’s best-selling music artist in 2023, breaking another record by topping the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) global artist list for the fourth time.
Her albums, 2022’s Midnights and 2023 re-releases Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) have all topped the UK charts.
Swift has been attempting to reclaim custody of her master recordings by re-recording her back catalog since 2021, with Fearless (Taylor’s Version).
