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On Thursday, Forbes released its list of the 25 highest-paid musicians of 2012, and to the surprise of many, veteran artists, and not newcomers, dominated the top ten positions, with Dr. Dre topping the list at $100 million pre-tax earnings.
Dre, who gained popularity in the world of hip-hop and rap in the early 90s made to the top supported by royalties from his past hits and by his hugely popular headphones business, Beats by Dre. Artists who have remained evergreen dominated most of the other top spots.
The second spot on the Forbes list went to bassist and singer Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, and British singer Elton John was at No.3. U2, which had topped the chart last year, took the fourth spot with a combined earnings of $78 million. In contrast, Roger Waters made $88 million, and Elton John $80 million.
Even the fifth spot went to a band from the 1990s, Take That, the British boy band, which got back together in 2005. Take That made a combined $69 million earned primarily from their eight-date tour at London’s Wembley Stadium.
The only two artists below the age of 30 to make the top 10 on the Forbes list were Taylor Swift at No. 8 and Justin Bieber, 18 at No. 10. Swift tied at $57 million for the No.8 spot with ex-Beatle Paul McCartney, while Bieber tied with country star Toby Keith at $55 million.
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