Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton Land on Forbes’ 2020 Highest-Paid Stars List
Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton are among the highest-paid celebrities of 2020, according to Forbes magazine.
The financial magazine published its annual list of the 100 highest-paid celebrities of the year on June 5, and the superstars weigh in for country music on a list that includes stars from across the spectrum of sports, television, radio, podcasting, films and more.
Bryan comes in at No. 62 on Forbes' list, earning 45.5 million in the last 12 months. Forbes notes that Bryan would have earned even more money had he not been forced to postpone his Proud To Be Right Here Tour in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Bryan had been averaging more than $1 million in every city on tour prior to the outbreak. The country superstar also earns significant income outside of his career in country music, pulling in $12 million each year for his judging gig on American Idol.
Shelton turns up at No. 70 on the list of highest-paid celebrities of 2020, earning an estimated $43.5 million over the last year. According to Forbes, Shelton had been earning slightly less than $1 million per night on tour prior to the pandemic, and he's had several hit singles in the last year, including his recent No. 1 hit duet with his girlfriend Gwen Stefani, "Nobody But You." Shelton also raked in $13 million for his work as a coach on The Voice.
Former country superstar turned pop icon Taylor Swift also made Forbes' list at No. 25, posting earnings of $63.5 million. Much of her earning power derived from her 2019 album Lover, which is her first release under the auspices of a new deal with Republic Records. The multi-platinum project helped Swift sell more than 4 million total units in the period from June of 2019 until June of 2020, but the singer called off all of her 2020 tour dates due to the coronavirus pandemic.
See the 10 Highest-Paid Country Stars of 2019