Who is the female musician who broke the glass ceiling and is now the richest in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$1.6 billion?
For decades, female musicians have sold albums, charted songs, graced stages, and captivated audiences, yet they were frequently overlooked and overshadowed, their recognitions unnoticed and their earnings were substantially less than those of male musicians. Like other professional industries such as finance and insurance, the gender pay gap was pervasive with sharp disparities.
The tides turned when groundbreaking female musicians like Madonna, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliot, Amy Winehouse, and Lady Gaga redefined the parameters of success. These trailblazers laid the foundation for modern female musicians to take the reins of their careers, resulting in a powerful shift in the industry.
Today, they’re evolving, innovating, and using their influence to explore billion-dollar business ventures such as Rihanna, and reclaiming their autonomy such as Taylor Swift. Female musicians are now among the wealthiest in the world, changing the game and the music landscape for generations of women to come.
Here are some of the richest female musicians in the world, according to Forbes, and their inspiring journeys.
Taylor Swift (US$1.6 billion)
A leading figure in pop culture, the outspoken advocate of artists’ rights and women’s empowerment Taylor Swift’s career peaked in recent years, from taking back autonomy by rerecording her studio albums while completing new material all at the same time, to breaking records with her Eras Tour which consists of 149 shows that span five continents. The singer-songwriter has now achieved billionaire status and is the richest female musician in the world with an estimated net worth of US$1.6 billion.
