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Forbes has just released 2011’s (May 2010 – May 2011) Hip Hop’s Cash King list. Jay-Z and Kanye topped the list, the list also includes Nicki Minaj who is now the FIRST female rapper to be included. See the full Top 20 list below. Click on each name to see Fobes breakdown of how they earned their spot.

Hip-Hop’s Top 20 Earners:
The success of hip-hop’s top earners shows just how powerful the genre has become as a commercial force. Led by Jay-Z and Diddy, the top 20 on our list combined to earn $271 million, taking home cash from live shows, recorded music, endorsements and a wide range of other entrepreneurial ventures. Read on to see the full list. – Forbes.com/Hip Hop’s Top 20 Earners

01.) Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter @ $37 million
02.) Sean “Diddy” Combs @ $35 million
03.) Kanye West @ $16 million
04.) Dwayne “Lil Wayne” Carter @ $15 million (tie)
04.) Bryan “Birdman” Williams @ $15 million (tie)
06.) Marshall “Eminem” Mathers @ $14 million (tie)
06.) Andre “Dr. Dre” Young @ $14 million (tie)
06.) Calvin “Snoop Dogg” Broadus @ $14 million (tie)
09.) Aliuane “Akon” Thiam @ $13 million
10.) Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges @ $12 million
11.) Cameron “Wiz Khalifa” Thomaz @ $11 million (tie)
11.) Aubrey “Drake” Graham @ $11 million (tie)
13.) Pharrell Williams @ $10 million
14.) Timothy “Timbaland” Mosley @ $7 million
15.) Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean @ $6.5 million (tie)
15.) Onika “Nicki Minaj” Maraj @ $6.5 million (tie)
17.) William “Rick Ross” Roberts @ $6 million (tie)
17.) Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson @ $6 million (tie)
17.) Armando “Pitbull” Perez @ $6 million (tie)
20.) Faheem “T-Pain” Najm @ $5 million (tie)
20.) Bobby “B.o.B” Simmons, Jr. @ $5 million (tie)

Cash Kings: Methodology:
The Hip-Hop Cash Kings charts pretax earnings for all living artists whose work is primarily classified as hip-hop or rap. The estimates include income from record sales, touring, digital downloads, films, merchandise sales, endorsements, books and other entertainment ventures; management, agent and attorney fees are not deducted. Earnings are calculated for the period from May 2010 to May 2011 and based on data from Pollstar, Nielsen SoundScan, the Recording Industry Association of America, and individual record labels, as well as interviews with numerous lawyers, media buyers, managers and many of the artists themselves.For more on the business of hip-hop, check outEmpire State of Mind: How Jay-Z Went From Street Corner to Corner Office. – Forbes.com/Cash Kings: Methodology

Spotted @: Forbes: Hip Hop’s Cash Kings

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