Paul McCartney (Photo: Tim Whitby)"Lead singer of a famous rock band" shapes up to be a pretty lucrative gig no matter how one slices it--but ever wondered which lead singer is the richest of them all? Not surprisingly, the title goes to legendary Beatle Paul McCartney, who tops a list over such other megabucks-frontmen as U2's Bono, Elton John, Jimmy Buffett, and Rolling Stone Mick Jagger.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, there's absolutely nothing "Yesterday" about McCartney's bank account--unless you count the songwriter's royalties he's collecting for that particular song (which has been played more than 7 million times on radio since its release). Based on public records of his various holdings, investments, and earnings, he's valued at $800 million.
However, there's one singer who could have beaten the mighty Macca--and that's first-runner-up Bono. The U2 frontman scores second on the list with a not-too-shabby $600 million to his name. That said, Celebrity Net Worth notes that Bono actually could have topped $1 billion, due to a savvy past investment: He purchased a 1.5% private stake in social media giant Facebook long before the company went public in May of this year. If Facebook had managed to acheive a $100 billion market cap--the market cap is a key factor that determines the value of a company's stock--that would have pushed Bono into the role first billionaire frontman in history. As it stands, Facebook's market cap stands at $44 billion, but things can always change.
Other notable names on the ultra-rich lead singer list probably won't surprise anyone--Kiss's Gene Simmons, Sting, Prince, and Dave Matthews all made the top 10. The only two frontwomen to make the coveted roster? No Doubt's Gwen Stefani and Fleetwood Mac diva Stevie Nicks.
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