Forbes' Top-Earning Celebs Under 30 LIST: Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Kristen Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence & More PHOTOS
Forbes has released their annual Top-Earning Celebrities Under 30 List and Lady Gaga landed at no. 1 this year.
Lady Gaga topped the list due to the $80 million she earned over the past 12 months, ahead of the release of her third album, ARTPOP. A large amount of her estimated earnings derived from last year's Born This Way Ball Tour. If the pop star didn't have to cut the tour short in January, so she could have hip surgery in February, she would have earned $200 million, according to Forbes.
Justin Bieber came in second after Gaga with $58 million. His earnings did not come from just touring and album sales, the "Biebs" is business savvy and has invested in several tech startups including Spotify, Enflick and Tinychat, Forbes reports.
Taylor Swift was next on the list with earnings of $58 million thanks to hefty album sales and several endorsement deals. She released her fourth album, Red, in September, 2012. The album sold more than 1 million copies in its first week of release, and as the spokesperson for Covergirl Cosmetics, Diet Coke and Sony, Swift has translated her marketability into big bucks.
Singer Calvin Harris came in at fourth place on the list. He earned $46 million this past year, mainly due to an ongoing Las Vegas residency DJ gig. He also penned songs for the likes of Rihanna (We Found Love.). The DJ played over 150 shows alone from June 1, 2012 to June 1, 2013.
Rihanna earned the number five spot with $43 million in earnings. The diva released her seventh album, Unapologetic, in November and it debuted at no.1 on the Billboard 200 chart. The singer took fans and reporters on the infamous 777 tour to promote the record. They flew on seven Boeing planes to seven countries in seven days. The media attention from the promotional gimmick translated into album sales for the Bajan beauty. She also fueled her bank account when she launched her Rihanna for River Island clothing line, starred in a new film (This Is the End) and launched the Rihanna for MAC makeup line.
Rihanna's former BFF Katy Perry earned $39 million, to put her at number six, despite having a relatively low-key year while working on her next album. Perry had major success with the sales of her last record, Teenage Dream, which spawned five no.1 singles. She is also raking in big bucks as an investor and spokesperson for Popchips and her own perfume line.
The following artists rounded out the top 10 of Forbes' list:
No. 7: Adele made: $25 million
No.8: Jennifer Lawrence: $26 million
No. 9: Kristen Stewart: $22 million
No. 10: Taylor Lautner: $22 million
