The very chameleonic and exciting Madonna has now a
new title. The 49-year-old Queen Of Pop earned the top spot in Forbes.com's
list of the Top 20 Cash Queens of Music.
In order to compile the top Forbes tracked the earnings in
the period between June 2006 and June 2007 and it has examined all the sources
of revenue such as concert grosses, merchandising revenue, album sales and
other from clothing lines, fragrance deals and endorsements.
The result? During this period, Madonna earned $72 million,
much of that much of that from her “Confessions tour.
The “Confessions” tour, which Billboard magazine ranked as
the highest-grossing tour ever by a female artist, drew more than 1.2 million
fans, despite (or because?) of its more controversial ingredients, such as the
cross and the crown of thorns.
Madonna’s last album, “Confessions on a Dance Floor,” sold an estimated 1.7
million copies in the United
States and 11 million copies worldwide.
Madonna Louise Ciccone signed with Sire Records in 1982 and
became one of MTV's first stars two years later with "Like A Virgin."
She has constantly changed her image ever since, showing staying power that few
'80s stars could muster. Later this year Madonna will release her final Warner
Bros. studio album, called “Liorice”.
The second female artist in Forbes’ list is Barbra Streisand,
who earned $60 million, thanks to her comeback tour of North America and Europe.
With $45 million, the Canadian singer Celine Dion ranked
third in Forbes’ “Cash Queens Of Music”. Last year, on December 15, Celine Dion performed for the
last time at Caesars Palace in Las
Vegas on Saturday. She thus ended her five-year, $400+
million engagement that saw Dion performing a stunning 717 times since March
2003. Celine Dion will kick off a 96-date world tour in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Valentine's Day
2008.
The Colombian singer and Grammy-award-winner Shakira won the
fourth place with $38 million, while the former Destiny Child’s member, Beyonce
concluded the Top 5 with $27 million.
Se was closely followed by the former lead singer of the
rock group No Doubt, Gwen Stefani, who earned $26 million. Also, Christina
Aguilera ($20 million), Faith Hill ($19 million), Dixie Chicks ($18 million) and
Mariah Carey ($13 million) have made it into Top 10.
The other Cash Queens of Music named by Forbes in its list are: Hilary
Duff - $12 million, Avril Lavigne - $12 million, Martina McBride $12 million, Britney
Spears - $8 million, Carrie Underwood - $7 million, Nelly Furtado - $7 million,
Fergie - $6 million, Jennifer Lopez - $6 million, Sheryl Crow - $6 million and Norah
Jones - $5.5 million.
