THE RICHEST PEOPLE IN HIP HOP - BLINGING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK

By Kopano Marumo

Hip Hop might be dead, according to Nas. But according to the dollar factor, hip hop is alive and well. And it's making all kinds of former criminals not just stinking rich but flippin' wealthy for generations to come. Not bad for the descendents of slavery.

The rags to riches story may ring the same for many of these hip-hop moguls and in our simple lives, what's one millionaire to the next. While we would be happy to retire early after winning the lottery, they only want more of their new money.
Is it greed and egotism or just plain old-fashioned hard work? While you make up your mind, try not to go too green with envy.

In this jaw-dropping feature we’ll profile the hip hop moguls who have more dough than your favourite bakery. We’ll start at the bottom (No.10) and work our way up to the de facto don of the hip hop fiefdom, so stick around for the ride through your idols' Cayman Island bank accounts.

10. (TIED)
NELLY (Cornell Haynes, Jr)
Dollar Status: $60 million (R420 million)

Grammy-award winning Nelly only just made it into the top ten, tying with big time producer JD.

The part-time actor flexes his pimp muscle as a co-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats basketball team and a NASCAR race team (making him one of the few African-Americans with interests in major sport franchises).

His cross-over appeal has earned the CEO of Derrty Entertainment, legions of fans. Then there’s his clothing label Vokal (Very Organised Kids Always Learning – whatever!?) and the female fashion line Apple Bottoms, which easily gross tens of millions of dollars per annum.

Taking his market reach even further, he collaborated with Nike in 2003 for a limited edition sneaker called “Air Derrty” on the back of his hit song “Air Force Ones”. As if that wasn’t enough on the sneaker side of things, he partnered with Reebok for yet another successful line of sneakers.

His energy drink Pimp Juice, which recently launched in SA in collaboration with the former premier of Mpumalanga, Matthews Phosa, is growing in popularity. He has also been named as a possible presenter and production partner for the SA version of Pimp My Ride. Over $40 million in worldwide record sales, numerous endorsement deals and tours, it’s sure is an understatement to say that Nelly has made it!

JERMAINE DUPRI (Mauldin)
Dollar Status: $60 million (R420 million)

JD, aka “Y’all know who dis is”, might be short in stature, but he’s long on the paper, if you know what I mean! The drummer/keyboardist’s ability to turn around ailing careers is admirable; his penchant for resuscitating ailing careers (Most noticeably: Mariah Carey) has embedded him as a true inspiration for little people everywhere!

His So So Def Recordings has been vital in the careers of Da Brat, TLC, Mariah Carey, Usher, Bow Wow, Jagged Edge and Kris Kross, just to name a few. All this production came at the cost of quitting school. He also has interests in a Chicago vodka distillery and a boutique restaurant, Café Dupri.

He was President of Urban Music at Virgin Records. Now he is the President of Urban Music over at Island Records, alongside Jay-Z and L.A. Reid. To top that all off, he is the envy of all guys that grew up fantasizing about Janet Jackson’s abs and other body region, as he’s been riding dirty with the last standing member of the Jackson family for a couple of years now.

Ed's note: Check out tomorrow's post as we'll reveal No.8 and 9 on the Hip Hop Rich List! And also look out for an upcoming feature titled, "30 Hip Hop Classic For Your Collection".

Have a blast of a weekend!