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Bob Dylan is an American folk singer, songwriter and is estimated to have a net worth of around $350 million.
Born in Duluth, Minnesota in 1941, Dylan was originally called Robert Allen Zimmerman. He released several albums in the 1960s before finding fame with songs such as "The Times They Are A Changin'"," "Blowing in the Wind", and "Like a Rolling Stone", which combined folk music with political messages popular with young music lovers of the time. The Bob Dylan song library is made up of over 600 works, and he receives around $15 million in royalty payments each year, much of which comes from contemporary musicians performing cover versions of his songs, as well as his original recordings being used in films and TV shows. However, in 2020 he sold his entire back catalog to Universal Music for a rumored $300 million in a financially shrewd move that surprised and confused many. Media conglomerate Vivendi will collect all future income from the songs.
Never one to shy away from controversy, in 1965 Dylan switched from acoustic to electric instruments, drawing criticism from fans of his traditional folk roots. The move proved to be worth the risk as his next three albums "Bringing It All Back Home"(1965), "Highway 61 Revisited" (1965), and "Blonde on Blonde" (1966) - recorded over the space of just 15 months - went on to become some of the most influential and successful releases of the 1960s.
Following this, Dylan was involved in a tragic motorcycle accident in 1966, leaving him severely injured. While the details of the accident remain unknown, Dylan withdrew from the limelight for a number of years. During this time he explored country music and recorded songs with other musicians, collectively known as The Band.
Throughout the 1970s he experimented with different styles of music, including a series of gospel albums following his conversion from Judaism to Christianity in 1979. In the early 1980s, he returned to a more familiar rock sound with albums such as 1983's "Infidels". In 1988 he began a series of financially successful tours which have since been dubbed "The Never-Ending Tour" due to the fact that Dylan has continued to tour without a meaningful break ever since. It is estimated that he's played over 3,000 shows in his Never-Ending Tour, and counting.
In the United States alone, Dylan has sold over 35 million albums with approximately 44 million sold overseas. Some of his highest-selling work includes "Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits", which has sold over 5 million copies; 1966's "Blonde on Blonde" and 2000's "The Essential Bob Dylan" both of which are double platinum with over 2 million albums sold.
If you want to book Bob Dylan to play live for you, you'd be looking at around $250,000. In 2016, he performed at the one-off Desert Trip festival alongside The Who and Paul McCartney for a rumored $7 million fee.
Dylan's personal life has seen its ups and downs. He married his first wife, model and secretary Sara Lownds, in 1965 and they had four children together: Jesse, Anna, Samuel, and Jacob - as well as Sara's daughter from a previous marriage, Maria, whom Dylan adopted. The song "Sara" from the 1976 album "Desire" is inspired by Lownds, along with many others while she was his wife and muse. The couple divorced in 1977 and it's rumored that Lownds received $36 million, as well as half the royalties to songs written by Dylan while they were married as part of the settlement. His second marriage, to his backup singer Carolyn Dennis, lasted from 1986 to 1992, they had one daughter together, Desiree Dennis-Dylan, who was born in 1986.
When not touring, Dylan is believed to live in Port Dume, Malibu, California, although he owns properties around the world.
Dylan has won many awards throughout his impressive career, including most notably the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016 - the first musician to do so. He didn't attend the prize-giving ceremony, and his award was accepted by Patti Smith on his behalf. The Nobel Prize comes with a payment of eight million Swedish kronor ($900,000). He has been named number one in Rolling Stone Magazine's Hundred Greatest Songwriters of All Time and included in Time Magazine's 100 Persons of the Century.
He's also the recipient of ten Grammy Awards, one Academy Award, and one Golden Globe award. He has been inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and Songwriters Hall of Fame. King Carl XVI of Sweden awarded him the Polar Music Prize - nicknamed the "Nobel Prize for Music" - in May 2000 for his lifetime of achievements. In 2012 President Barack Obama gave Dylan the Presidential Merit of Freedom.
As one of the most influential musicians and songwriters of all time, Dylan's legacy is assured.
Sources: NY Times, Independent, Wikipedia, Consequence of Sound, RollingStone, Time
This article was updated on March 30th, 2021 by Poppy O'Neill
Earnings & Financial Data
|
Date |
Category |
Description |
Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
|
2020 |
Sale of Asset |
Sale of back catalog |
$300,000,000 |
|
2019 |
Royalties |
Royalties from back catalog |
$15,000,000 |
|
2018 |
Royalties |
Royalties from back catalog |
$15,000,000 |
|
2017 |
Royalties |
Royalties from back catalog |
$15,000,000 |
|
2016 |
Others |
Nobel Prize for Literature |
$900,000 |
|
2015 |
Sale of Asset |
Estimated earnings from the sale of personal artefacts to the George Kaiser foundation and University of Tulsa |
$20,000,000 |
|
2013 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The 50th Anniversary Collection 1964 |
$1,000,000 |
|
2012 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The 50th Anniversary Collection 1963 |
$100,000 |
|
2011 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Tempest (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
2011 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The 50th Anniversary Collection |
$100,000 |
|
2011 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The Real Bob Dylan (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
2008 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Christmas in the Heart (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
2008 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The Collection (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
2008 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Together Through Life (certified gold by BPI) |
$100,000 |
|
2007 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Bootleg Series Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989–2006 (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
2006 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album Dylan (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
2005 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Modern Times (certified platinum by RIAA, Music Canada and BPI, and gold by ARIA) |
$1,435,000 |
|
2004 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
2002 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
2001 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Bob Dylan Live 1975, The Rolling Thunder Revue (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
2000 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Love and Theft (certified gold by RIAA and BPI) |
$600,000 |
|
1999 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The Essential Bob Dylan (certified 2x platinum by ARIA, and platinum by RIAA and BPI) |
$1,340,000 |
|
1997 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Bootleg Series Vol. 4: Bob Dylan Live 1966, The "Royal Albert Hall" Concert (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1996 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album The Best of Bob Dylan (certified gold by BPI) |
$100,000 |
|
1996 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Time Out of Mind (certified platinum by RIAA, and gold by ARIA, Music Canada and BPI) |
$1,185,000 |
|
1994 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album MTV Unplugged (certified gold by RIAA and BPI) |
$600,000 |
|
1993 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Volume 3 (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
1990 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991 (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1989 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Under the Red Sky (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
1988 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Basement Tapes (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1988 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album Dylan & the Dead (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
1984 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Empire Burlesque (certified gold by Music Canada) |
$50,000 |
|
1984 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album Biograph (certified platinum by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$1,060,000 |
|
1982 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Infidels (certified gold by RIAA and Music Canada, and silver by BPI) |
$610,000 |
|
1980 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Shot of Love (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
1979 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Saved (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |
|
1978 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album Bob Dylan at Budokan (certified gold by RIAA, Music Canada and BPI) |
$650,000 |
|
1978 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Desire (certified 2x platinum by Music Canada, platinum by RIAA, and gold by BPI) |
$1,260,000 |
|
1977 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Street-Legal (certified platinum by Music Canada and BPI, and gold by RIAA) |
$900,000 |
|
1975 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album Hard Rain (certified gold by RIAA and BPI) |
$600,000 |
|
1975 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Desire (certified 2x platinum by RIAA, platinum by Music Canada, and gold by BPI) |
$2,200,000 |
|
1974 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Basement Tapes (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1974 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Blood on the Tracks (certified 2x platinum by RIAA, and platinum by Music Canada and BPI) |
$2,400,000 |
|
1973 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Planet Waves (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1973 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his live album Before the Flood (certified platinum by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$1,060,000 |
|
1972 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
1972 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Dylan (certified gold by RIAA, ARIA and BPI) |
$635,000 |
|
1970 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II (certified 5x platinum by RIAA and 2x platinum by Music Canada) |
$5,200,000 |
|
1969 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album New Morning (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
1969 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Self Portrait (certified gold by RIAA) |
$500,000 |
|
1968 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Nashville Skyline (certified platinum by RIAA, and gold by Music Canada and BPI) |
$1,150,000 |
|
1966 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his compilation album Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits (certified 5x platinum by RIAA and 2x platinum by Music Canada) |
$5,200,000 |
|
1966 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album John Wesley Harding (certified platinum by RIAA and gold by BPI) |
$1,100,000 |
|
1965 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Blonde on Blonde (certified 2x platinum by RIAA and platinum by BPI) |
$2,300,000 |
|
1964 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Highway 61 Revisited (certified platinum by RIAA, and gold by Music Canada and BPI) |
$1,150,000 |
|
1964 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Bringing It All Back Home (certified platinum by RIAA and gold by BPI) |
$1,100,000 |
|
1963 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Another Side of Bob Dylan (certified gold by RIAA and silver by BPI) |
$560,000 |
|
1963 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Times They Are a-Changin' (certified gold by RIAA and BPI) |
$600,000 |
|
1962 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan (certified platinum by RIAA and gold by BPI) |
$1,100,000 |
|
1961 |
Record Sales |
Estimated earnings from his album Bob Dylan (certified silver by BPI) |
$60,000 |