THE HIGHEST-PAID MUSICIANS OF 2019
THE ROLLING STONES RULE BILLBOARD’S ANNUAL EARNINGS LIST, WHICH TRACKS THE REVENUE STREAMS OF MUSIC’S TOP ACTS ACROSS STREAMING, PUBLISHING AND TOURING.
Before the pandemic halted concerts, shuttered retailers and plunged the economy into a recession, the music industry’s top 40 earners continued to rake in ample returns in 2019, despite slight income dips year over year. Billboard’s annual Money Makers report — which ranks the earnings of the top 40 music acts based on 2019 U.S. concert grosses and recording royalties generated in the same period from domestic sales, streaming and publishing — reveals a collective take-home pay of $950 million overall, down from $1.05 billion in 2018. Box-office profits fell 5.26%, from $795 million in 2018 to $753 million, while artist and publishing royalties also dipped, by 10.4%, from $220 million to $197 million.
Although touring profits declined slightly in 2019, they remained (as they have since this list was established) the biggest factor in determining which acts made the list. Artists such as Elton John and P!nk, who made the majority of their income on the road, ended up bumping acts with huge streaming numbers but little in the way of box office off the list. According to the RIAA, streaming revenue grew 19.9% to $8.8 billion in 2019. The collective streaming royalties of the top 40 earners on this list tell a different story. Total streaming revenue for this group actually dropped 11.5% from $125.8 million in 2018 to $109 million last year.
That year-to-year comparison would have been flat if Drake and the late Juice WRLD had made the list. They generated streaming royalties of $14.7 million and $7.8 million, respectively, but because they did less touring in 2019, Drake finished at No. 44 and Juice WRLD at No. 53. If all of the top 10 streaming artists, including four hip-hop acts — Drake, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, Juice WRLD and Eminem — plus Taylor Swift, had qualified to make the final list; and the four artists with the lowest streaming royalties — KISS, Cher, Trans-Siberian Orchestra and New Kids on the Block — had been knocked off the list, streaming royalties would have totaled $151.3 million, a 20% increase over the prior year’s total of $125.8 million.
By genre, there are 14 pop, 14 rock, eight country, three R&B/hip-hop and just one Latin artist on the Money Makers list. The split is divided almost evenly between contemporary acts (21) and heritage performers (19) — artists who are active for at least 20 years and/or with a minimum of 10 albums in their catalog. Among the latter group: Cher, Bob Seger and New Kids on the Block. Eight R&B/hip-hop acts appeared on the list last year, while just three made the cut in 2019: Post Malone (No. 6), the top earner in the genre at $34.2 million, followed by Khalid (No. 25) at $18.5 million and Travis Scott (No. 40) at $15.5 million. Once again, no electronic dance artists are included on this ranking because DJs rarely report their live earnings, which constitute most of their income.
The top Money Maker in 2019, The Rolling Stones, earned a colossal $65 million, mostly from their No Filter stadium tour, which was delayed for several months after frontman Mick Jagger underwent emergency surgery in April 2019 to replace a heart valve. Likewise, the No. 1 Money Maker of 2018, Taylor Swift, reigned largely due to revenue from her record-breaking reputation tour, which earned her $90.5 million in take-home pay — $30 million more than the Stones. Those tours were the top-grossing U.S. live outings of 2018 and 2019, respectively, and now that the pandemic has shut off that income stream, 2020 promises to be significantly less profitable for artists (if at all) and one in which revenue will come largely from sales, streaming and publishing, which account for just 20.7% percent of the dollar total of this year’s ranking.
The Highest-Paid Musicians| # | Artist | $ |
| 1 | The Rolling Stones | 65M |
| 2 | Ariana Grande | 44.3M |
| 3 | Elton John | 43.3M |
| 4 | Jonas Brothers | 40.9M |
| 5 | Queen | 35.2M |
| 6 | Post Malone | 34.2M |
| 7 | P!nk | 30.5M |
| 8 | Kiss | 26.7M |
| 9 | Billy Joel | 26.1M |
| 10 | Justin Timberlake | 25.9M |
| 11 | Eric Church | 25.85M |
| 12 | Cher | 25.2M |
| 13 | Paul McCartney | 23.9M |
| 14 | Trans-Siberian Orchestra | 25.2M |
| 15 | Celine Dion | 21.9M |
| 16 | Dead & Company | 21.86M |
| 17 | George Strait | 21.3M |
| 18 | Lady Gaga | 21.1M |
| 19 | Backstreet Boys | 21.07M |
| 20 | Michael Buble | 20.99M |
| 21 | Florida Georgia Line | 20.89M |
| 22 | BTS | 20.6M |
| 23 | Bad Bunny | 19.5M |
| 24 | Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band | 18.6M |
| 25 | Khalid | 18.5M |
| 26 | Aerosmith | 18.3M |
| 27 | New Kids On The Block | 18M |
| 28 | Metallica | 17.9M |
| 29 | Jennifer Lopez | 17.7M |
| 30 | Carrie Underwood | 17.5M |
| 31 | Billie Eilish | 17.2M |
| 32 | Shawn Mendes | 17.19M |
| 33 | Zac Brown Band | 17.1M |
| 34 | Luke Combs | 17.05M |
| 35 | Thomas Rhett | 16.7M |
| 36 | John Mayer | 16.5M |
| 37 | Jason Aldean | 16.3M |
| 38 | Fleetwood Mac | 15.6M |
| 39 | Travis Scott | 15.5M |
| 40 | Panic! At The Disco | 15.4M |
| # | Artist | $ |
| 1 | Queen | 9.6M |
| 2 | Metallica | 3.6M |
| 3 | Billie Eilish | 2.5M |
| 4 | Paul McCartney | 2.3M |
| 5 | BTS | 2.04M |
| 6 | Taylor Swift* | 1.97M |
| 7 | The Rolling Stones | 1.7M |
| 8 | Tool* | 1.5M |
| 9 | Post Malone | 1.4M |
| 10 | Jonas Brothers | 1.2M |
*Artist did not qualify for the Money Makers list
Top Streaming| # | Artist | $ |
| 1 | Drake* | 12.1M |
| 2 | Post Malone | 11.3M |
| 3 | Taylor Swift* | 8.3M |
| 4 | Ariana Grande | 8.2M |
| 5 | Queen | 8.1M |
| 6 | Youngboy Never Broke Again* | 7.9M |
| 7 | Juice WRLD* | 7.8M |
| 8 | Eminem* | 7.4M |
| 9 | Khalid | 6.5M |
| 10 | Billie Eilish | 6.1M |
*Artist did not qualify for the Money Makers list
Top Publishing| # | Artist | $ |
| 1 | Billie Eilish | 6.9M |
| 2 | Jonas Brothers | 3.8M |
| 3 | Panic! At The Disco | 3.6M |
| 4 | Post Malone | 3.11M |
| 5 | Queen | 3.06M |
| 6 | Taylor Swift* | 2.63M |
| 7 | Ed Sheeran* | 2.56M |
| 8 | Twenty One Pilots* | 2.1M |
| 9 | Drake | 2M |
| 10 | Khalid | 1.99M |
*Artist did not qualify for the Money Makers list
Top U.S. Touring Box Office| # | Artist | $ |
| 1 | The Rolling Stones | 60.5M |
| 2 | Elton John | 39.5M |
| 3 | Jonas Brothers | 33.74M |
| 4 | Ariana Grande | 33.73M |
| 5 | P!nk | 26.5M |
| 6 | Kiss | 25.7M |
| 7 | Cher | 2435M |
| 8 | Justin Timberlake | 23.7M |
| 9 | Billy Joel | 23.2M |
| 10 | Eric Church | 22.8M |
*Artist did not qualify for the Money Makers list
METHODOLOGY: Money Makers was compiled with 2019 U.S.-only Nielsen Music and Billboard Boxscore data. All revenue figures cited are Billboard estimates and, due to rounding, an artist’s total may not equal the sum of the subcategories. Revenue from merchandising, synchronization and sponsorship is not included. Unless otherwise noted, streaming totals consist of combined on-demand audio, video and programmed streams. Recording-career totals are the sum of an artist’s sales, streaming and publishing earnings. Revenue from featured-artist appearances is credited to the main artists, but other recording collaborations — usually denoted as a “duet with,” “+” or “&” — are generally split evenly by the artists. Touring revenue, after the manager’s cut, equals 34% of an act’s Boxscore. Sales royalties were calculated based on physical/digital albums and track sales. Streaming royalties consist of on-demand audio/video streams, plus estimated royalties from programmed webcasting, SiriusXM and Music Choice. The following royalty rates were used: album and track sales, 22% of retail revenue. On-demand streaming royalties were calculated using blended audio and video rates of, respectively, $0.0054 and $0.0016 per stream. After deducting a 4% producer’s fee from each artist, streaming royalties then were calculated using a 22% royalty rate for new hit artists, 33% for superstar artists, 46% for heritage artists and 74% for artists that own their masters. A subscription per-stream rate of $0.0020 — blended to reflect the different statutory rates for ad-supported and subscription streams — was applied to programmed streams, and per-play estimated rates of $0.74 and $30.00 were applied to Music Choice and SiriusXM plays, respectively. After calculating these revenues and deducting the 4% producer’s fee, artists were credited with a 41% split from SoundExchange payouts. Publishing royalties were estimated using statutory mechanical rates for album and track sales. The Copyright Royalty Board streaming formula produced an average rate of 13.1% of streaming revenue, and the following per-play averages: hit radio, $2.50; heritage spins, $0.60; Music Choice, $0.40; SiriusXM, $8.33; programmed streams, $0.0003. Billboard estimated each artist’s songwriter’s share of the recorded music included in these calculations, and publishing royalties were calculated as co-publishing deals, giving the writer 75% of those royalties. A 10% manager’s fee was deducted from artist and publisher recorded-music royalty pools.
BREAKDOWN Top 10
#1
| The Rolling Stones | $65M |
| Last Year | No. 25 |
| Sales | $1.7M |
| Streaming | $2M |
| Publishing | $80.3K |
| Touring | $60.5M |
The rock’n’roll legends secured the top spot as the top live band of the year in the United States, taking home $65 million for the year. They ranked seventh in royalties from sales, bolstered by the 2019 release of a new compilation, Honk. As one of the few bands on the list this year that owns its masters, the group enjoys a 74% cut of revenue generated by the songs the act recorded from the 1970s forward.
#2| Ariana Grande | $44.3M |
| Last Year | - |
| Sales | $1.1M |
| Streaming | $8.2M |
| Publishing | $1.2M |
| Touring | $33.7M |
Thanks to her sprawling Sweetener world tour, Grande finished at No. 4 overall in the live category. The “thank u, next” singer was also one of six artists to break the $10 million barrier for artist and publishing royalties — nearly 24% of her overall take-home pay — thanks to nearly 7 billion in audio, video and programmed streams, or No. 4 overall in combined streams. She also placed fourth in overall streams and seventh in track downloads.
#3
| Elton John | $43.3M |
| Last Year | 8 |
| Sales | $993.4K |
| Streaming | $2.2M |
| Publishing | $621K |
| Touring | $39.5M |
John rose in the rankings thanks to the nearly $40 million he took home from his Goodbye Yellow Brick Road Tour. But the release of the pop star’s biopic, Rocketman, also provided a lift. While he performs only one song on the soundtrack, the use of his hits in the film increased sales and streaming activity for his catalog, which pulled in $3.8 million in artist and publishing revenue.
#4
| Jonas Brothers | $40.9M |
| Last Year | - |
| Sales | $1.2M |
| Streaming | $2.1M |
| Publishing | $3.8M |
| Touring | $33.7M |
The pop sibling trio reemerged in March 2019 with “Sucker,” the Hot 100 No. 1 hit that helped the group become the No. 3 highest-grossing live act in the United States. That translated into just north of $40 million in take-home pay for the brothers. Fueled by their Happiness Begins album, they finished in the top 10 for publishing royalties and were the seventh most-played recording act at terrestrial radio, with singles receiving nearly 1.4 million plays during the year.
#5
| Queen | $35.2M |
| Last Year | 37 |
| Sales | $9.6M |
| Streaming | $8.1M |
| Publishing | $3.1M |
| Touring | $14.4M |
Queen was still cashing in from the success of its 2018 biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, with nearly 60% of the band’s overall revenue coming from its recorded-music catalog, which the band owns. The group was the top seller of physical albums and nearly hit the million-unit mark, with $20.7 million in total artist royalties. The glam rockers, now fronted by Adam Lambert, also scored on the road, taking home $14.4 million from The Rhapsody Tour.
#6
| Post Malone | $34.2M |
| Last Year | 15 |
| Sales | $1.4M |
| Streaming | $11.3M |
| Publishing | $3.1M |
| Touring | $18.4M |
Like Queen’s, Post Malone’s recorded-music catalog generated major revenue, with nearly half of his overall take-home pay coming from streams and sales. The release of his third album, Hollywood’s Bleeding, helped him crack the top 10 this year, which propelled the genre-blending artist to No. 1 in track sales with 2.3 million song downloads; No. 2 in combined audio, video and programmed streams at a whopping 9.1 billion plays; and No. 2 in overall artist and publishing royalties at $15.8 million.
#7
| P!nk | $30.5M |
| Last Year | 10 |
| Sales | $1.04M |
| Streaming | $1.8M |
| Publishing | $1.2M |
| Touring | $26.5M |
P!nk released her eighth studio album, Hurts 2B Human, in April 2019, which secured the pop rebel a third consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Although the record boosted sales and streaming numbers, recorded music generated only 13.25% of her income. Her top 10 ranking is largely attributable to her acrobatic Beautiful Trauma tour, which raked in over $26 million for the artist born Alecia Moore.
#8
| Kiss | $26.7M |
| Last Year | - |
| Sales | $405.3K |
| Streaming | $406.4K |
| Publishing | $177.6K |
| Touring | $25.7M |
Live performances accounted for almost 96% of KISS’ annual take-home pay. The “Detroit Rock City” rockers earned over $25 million from what they’ve billed as their final End of the Road world tour. The group hasn’t fared as well in the streaming era as its heritage peers, generating only 240 million plays, which could explain the band’s artist and publishing royalties, which amount to just under $1 million.
#9
| Billy Joel | $26.1M |
| Last Year | 9 |
| Sales | $301.9K |
| Streaming | $1.7M |
| Publishing | $985.4K |
| Touring | $23.2M |
Billy Joel performed a dozen shows at Madison Square Garden in New York, as well as dates at Boston’s Fenway Park, Baltimore’s Oriole Park at Camden Yards and other large-scale venues. Although touring accounted for the majority of the Long Islander’s income, his catalog still churned out nearly $3 million, about 11% of his revenue.
#10
| Justin Timberlake | $25.9M |
| Last Year | 7 |
| Sales | $168.8K |
| Streaming | $1.5M |
| Publishing | $527.6K |
| Touring | $23.7M |
Timberlake earned his place on this year’s list thanks to his Man of the Woods stadium trek. He finished ninth in box-office grosses for 2019 and took home $23.7 million. The “Filthy” singer’s recorded-music career accounted for only 8.6% of his annual earnings, but his streaming numbers soared to over 1 billion plays.
