Forbes has published a list of the top-earning musicians of 2013, and leading the way with a mammoth total of $125 million earned is none other than Madonna. Forbes points to the success of her MDNA world tour, as well as other major revenue streams like concert merchandise, her Material Girl clothing line, and her Truth or Dare fragrance.



Lady Gaga placed at number two, bringing in $80 million over the last year. Bon Jovi came in at three with $79 million, and Coldplay took home a cool $64 million, good enough for fifth on the list

Other notables include Beyoncé ($53 million); Paul McCartney ($47 million); Roger Waters ($44 million); Muse ($43 million); and Jay Z ($42 million). Somehow, DJ Calvin Harris made $46 million, and Dr. Dre — who’s still considered as a musician, I guess — earned $40 million. And next time your friends tells you Red Hot Chili Peppers are irrelevant, remind them they made $40 million in 2013.

In order to form their list, Forbes “looked at income from June 1st, 2012 through June 1st, 2013, using data sources including Pollstar, the RIAA, Nielsen SoundScan, managers, lawyers and many of the artists themselves. We took into account concert ticket sales, royalties for recorded music and publishing, merchandise sales, endorsement deals and other business ventures. Our estimates reflect pretax income before deducting fees for agents, managers and lawyers; only living artists are eligible for the list.”

Here’s the full list:

01. Madonna – $125 million

02. Lady Gaga – $80 million

03. Bon Jovi – $79 million

04. Toby Keith – $65 million

05. Coldplay – $64 million

06. Justin Bieber – $58 million

07. Taylor Swift – $55 million

08. Elton John – $54 million

09. Beyonce – $53 million

09. Kenny Chesney – $53 million

11. Diddy – $50 million

12. Paul McCartney – $47 million

13. Calvin Harris – $46 million

14. Jennifer Lopez – $45 million

15. Roger Waters – $44 million

16. Muse – $43 million

16. Rihanna – $43 million

18. Jay Z – $42 million

18. One Direction – $42 million

20. Dr. Dre – $40 million

20. Red Hot Chili Peppers – $40 million

22. The Rolling Stones – $39 million

22. Katy Perry – $39 million

24. Tim McGraw – $33 million

25. Pink – $32 million

25. Tiësto – $32 million