Africa is no doubt one of the best continents in the world when it comes to music and the continents produce millions of super talented musicians every year. African musicians are also some of the biggest music acts in the world with millions of people listening to their music worldwide.
They say success and fame in any entertainment industry comes with wealth and like other musicians of the world, African musicians are also very wealthy individuals with networth reaching millions of dollars when calculated.
Some popular Nigerian hip-hop musicians like Jidenna, Don-Jazzy, WizKid, and Davido also made it to this list of the top 10 richest musicians in Africa. These Nigerian artists are also some of the richest entertainers back home in Nigeria and they’re all worth millions of dollars when valued.
If you have been searching for a list of the richest musicians in African according to Forbes, then this article will answer your questions and without wasting more of your time, let’s jump right into the list.
Top 10 Richest Musicians In Africa Right Now & Their NetWorth
1. Akon
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $80 million
- Current age – 45 years (16 April 1973)
- Record Label – Konvict Musik
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – American/Senegalese
With real names as Aliaume Damala Badara Akon Thiam, Akon is the Forbes richest musician in Africa. He is an African-American singer, songwriter, producer, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and actor who is known all over Africa and the world in general.
Akon is also the CEO of Konvict Musik – a record label which he is also signed into. With over 35 million albums sold out, and hundreds of music singles and collabs with the biggest names in the world’s music industry, we believe that Akon truly deserves this feat. As of the time of compiling this article, he is said to be worth around $80 million (Forbes).
As a five-time Grammy nominee, Akon boasts of a very successful career in Africa and the world at large. He is also currently working on a project known as AkonCity in his home country, Senegal and his constriction cost millions of dollars to carry out.
2. Dj Black Coffee
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $60 Million
- Current age – 42 years (11 March 1976)
- Record Label – Soulistic Music
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – South African
Nkosinathi Innocent Maphumulo who is popularly known by his stage name DJ Black Coffee, is a South African DJ, producer, songwriter, and singer. Black coffee started his career around 1995 and he has released 5 albums and also created his own record label known as UltraMusic.
He also became very popular shortly after being chosen as a participant in the Red Bull Music Academy (2004) which was held in Cape Town.
Also, in September 2015, Black Coffee won the “Breakthrough DJ of the Year” award at the DJ Awards in Ibiza. This happened just a few weeks after he released his fifth music album.
With a net worth of $60 Million (Forbes), DJ Black Coffee is the 2nd richest musician in Africa just after Akon.
3. Don-Jazzy
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $47 Million
- Current age – 36 years (26 November 1982)
- Record Label – Mavin Records(Supreme Mavin Dynasty)
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Nigerian
Don Jazzy, whose real names are Michael Collins Ajereh is a Nigerian producer, singer, songwriter, and businessman. He hails from Isoko from Delta State in Nigeria but was born in Umuahia, Abia State after which he moved to Ajegunle, Lagos where he was raised.
In 2012, Don Jazzy founded Mavin Records which currently has some of the biggest artists in the Nigerian music industry namely REMA, Crayon, Korede Bello, DNA Twins, Dija, and more.
Don Jazzy has also helped many other talented artists like Reekado Banks and Korede Bello become successful. Aside from music, The Don as he is fondly called is engaged in real estate management, forex trading, and Wi-Fi production business in Nigeria, and as of the time of writing this article, DonJazzy’s networth is pegged at $30 Million according to Forbes.
He is the 3rd richest African Musician and currently the richest musician in Nigeria.
4. Davido
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $21 Million
- Age – 26 years (21 November 1992)
- Record Label – Davido Music Worldwide(DMW)
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – American/Nigerian
David Adedeji Adeleke who is popularly known by his stage name Davido is the son of a Nigerian billionaire – Mr. Adeleke. Davido is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and producer, and this music star was born in Atlanta, Georgia but later relocated to Lagos as a very young guy due to his love for his motherland – Nigeria.
His record label, Davido Music Worldwide (DMW) is also a leading force in the Nigerian music industry with many talented Nigerian musicians signed as artists. Some popular Nigerian musicians signed to DMW include Mayorkun, Peruzzi, B-Red, and just recently, MayD.
Davido also has many nominations, awards, and profitable endorsements which fetch him lots of income monthly. He is signed to Sony Music and not only the son of a Nigerian billionaire and a highly respected Nigerian musician, but he also the fifth musician on this list of the top 10 richest musicians in Africa with a networth of $21 Million according to Forbes Africa.
5. WizKid
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $70 Million
- Current age – 29 years (16 July 1990)
- Record Label – Star Boy Music
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Nigerian
WizKid with real names as Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun is a Nigerian singer and songwriter and the CEO of Starboy Entertainment. He is a very rich Nigerian musician and was born in Surulere in Lagos State, Nigeria. He gained international recognition after he collaborated with Drake on the song titled “One Dance“.
This song reached number one on the countdown in more than 15 countries which includes the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. From being a singer in a small church in his neighborhood to becoming a global superstar, WizKid has proven to be successful in all ramifications.
He is currently estimated to be worth around $16 Million making him one of the richest African musicians right now.
6. Sarkodie
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $7 Million
- Age – 31 years (10 July 1988)
- Record Label – Sarkcess Music
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Ghanaian
Sarkodie whose real names are Michael Owusu Addo is a Ghanaian recording artist, rapper and well known entrepreneur. Not only is he a notable artist in Africa, Sarkodie is also a very rich rapper and the only representative of his country, Ghana on this list of the wealthiest African musicians. He is also the richest musician in Ghana currently.
This Ghanian rapper currently has 5 albums in his music career and these albums have proven to be successful so far. Sarkodie has also often been named as one of Africa’s greatest hip-hop artists by popular music websites like MTV Base, Lynx Tv, and more.
As of the time of compiling this article, Sarkodie boasts of a net worth of $7 Million. Like most musicians, Sarkodie earns money from album & music sales, brand endorsement deals, sponsored posts and more.
7. Tinashe
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $6 Million
- Age – 26 years (6 February 1993)
- Record Label – Konvict Music
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Zimbabwean
Tinashe made it as the only female musician on this list and she is the richest African femal musicians. She was born into the family of a Zimbabwean professor named Michael Kachingwe and his wife, Aimie Kachingwe in Lexington, Kentucky USA.
With real names as Tinashe Jorgensen Kachingwe, Tinashe is an American singer, dancer, songwriter, producer, actress, and fashion model. She has so far released a number of albums and collaborated with very popular musicians in Africa and the world at large.
This female Zimbabwean-American musician is the seventh musician on the list of the top ten richest musicians in Africa and she currently has a net worth of $6 Million according to Forbes Africa.
8. Hugh Masekela (Late)
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $1.5 Million
- Age – 78 years (1939–2018)
- Record Label – Mercury, MGM & Uni
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – South African
Hugh Ramapolo Masekela up till January 2018 was a South African trumpeter, composer and singer. He was popularly referred to as “The Father Of South African Jazz” and he is always in the heart of many lovers of Jazz music in South Africa.`
Sadly, he died on January 23, 2018, at a ripe age of 78. Hugh was a very successful musician during his lifetime as he regularly left his home country for international trips and shows.
Some months before his death, it was reported on some online media platforms that he was once paid $20,000 to perform for a single show.
Even after his death, Hugh still remains the eighth richest African musicians with an estimated networth of around $1.5 Million according to the latest data from Forbes.
9. Jidenna
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $1 Million
- Age – 34 years (4 May 1985)
- Record Label – Wondaland Records, Fear & Fancy & Epic Records.
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Nigerian
With real names as Jidenna Theodore Mobisson, Jidenna is a Nigerian-American rapper, singer, songwriter, and a music producer. In 2015, Jidenna released two major singles titled, “Classic Man” and “Yoga” and these songs were widely accepted by music lovers worldwide especially in the United States.
After graduating from Standford University in the United States of America, he signed a deal with Wondaland Records. This musician considers himself a pure Nigerian man, and has many time stated that he wants to become a key player in the development of music and art in Africa.
Also in 2015, he won the award for ‘Best New Artist’ at the Soul Train Music Awards. The song “Classic man” also won the awards for ‘Song of the Year’ and ‘Video of the Year’ respectively at the Soul Train Music Awards in 2015.
Jidenna made it to the 9th position on this list of Africa’s wealthiest musicians.
10. Oliver Mtukudzi
- Estimated Networth (Forbes) – $5 Million
- Age – 66 years (22 September 1952)
- Record Label – Currently Unknown
- Nationality/Country Of Origin – Zimbabwean
Oliver Tuku Mtukudzi is a Zimbabwean musician, businessman, philanthropist, human rights activist and the UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Southern Africa Region. He has over 65 albums and more than 41 years of experience in on-stage music performance and live music in general.
This musician is not just wealthy and famous for his songs but he has also been considered as one of Zimbabwe’s most renowned and internationally recognized cultural personality of all time.
Oliver Mtukudzi is a father of 5 and grandfather of 2. He is the 10th musican on this list and hes is currently said to be worth around $1m as of this year.
Conclusion
This concludes our list of the top 10 richest musicians in Africa.
All rankings and net-worth in this post are solely based on data gotten from American biggest online business magazine – Forbes which is known for compiling very accurate lists of the richest people from around the globe.
What are your thoughts about this article? Do you think any musician deserved to be on this list or removed? Let us know in the comments below as we would love to know what you think about this article.
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