With $130 million in earnings over the past 12 months, Combs edged out Beyoncé for the No. 1 spot. Forbes reports that there are three reasons behind the rapper and mogul’s climb. He sold one-third of his Sean John clothing line for an estimated $70 million, he has his lucrative Diageo Ciroc vodka partnership, and he put on his Bad Boy Family Reunion Tour.
Combs wasn’t on last year’s list, which was topped by Taylor Swift. She fell from the top spot to No. 49 with $44 million earned over the past year.
Beyoncé made a huge jump from No. 34 last year to this year’s No. 2 ranking with $105 million earned. Forbes attributes her meteoric rise to her Formation World Tour and the release of her visual album, �Lemonade.”
�Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling, Drake, and Spanish soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo round out the top five.
Here are the top 10 celebrity earners:
1. Sean Combs, $130 million
2. Beyoncé Knowles, $105 million
3. J.K. Rowling, $95 million
4. Drake, $94 million
5. Cristiano Ronaldo, $93 million
6. The Weeknd, $92 million
7. Howard Stern, $90 million
8. Coldplay, $88 million
9. James Patterson, $87 million
10. LeBron James, $86 million
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