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Some of the world's most famous artists of the past few decades have either been full fledged R&B artists, or incorporated R&B influences into their overall sound. They've sold hundreds of millions of albums, won dozens of Grammy's and some, have even written and produced for other artists.
R&B singers are also some of the richest, most successful singers and songwriters of all time. The ten artists on this list are worth over $1.5 billion dollars alone, but honestly, that figure doesn't even scratch the surface of the entire genre. Here are the net worths of 10 of the richest!
Keri Hilson - $15 Million
Keri Hilson is an American singer and song writer. She released her first album, A Perfect World a decade ago. From it came hit singles like "Knock You Down" and "Turning Me On," which featured collaborations with Neyo and Lil Wayne. Her second album made less of a splash, but we doubt it impacted her standard of living too much.
Prior to dipping her toes into the singing arena, Keri Hilson was an accomplished songwriter, who had written for artists like Mary J. Blige, Ludacris, and Britney Spears.
Keri Hilson is worth $15 million.
CeeLo Green - $22 Million
CeeLo Green is a man of many talents. He started off his career in the group, Goodie Mob, before transitioning into another group called Gnarles Barkley, years later. Afterward he went the solo route, a decision that has benefited him greatly. Over the years, CeeLo Green has released hit songs like "Crazy" and "Forget You," which are still widely listened to today.
Cee Low was also a founding judge on the singing competition show, The Voice.
He has a net worth of $22 million.
Kandi Burruss- $35 Million
The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Kandi Burruss is probably The Real Housewives Of Atlanta, a show she's been on for nearly a decade. But that only scratches the surface of Kandi's resume.
The reality star's career actually kicked off in the 1992 when Xscape, the group she was apart of, put out their first hit song, "Just Kickin' It." The group's success grew as the decade progressed until they broke up in 1998. Around that time, Kandi transitioned into a respectable song writing career, which saw her working with TLC, NSYNC, Whitney Houston and more.
Kandi Burruss is worth $35 million.
John Legend - $45 Million
John Legend is currently one of the most famous singers in the world. In September 2018, he became the second youngest person ever to become an EGOT winner, which means he holds at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony award.
Though his sound has never been strictly R&B, he's always incorporated elements of the genre into his music. Some of his biggest hits include songs like "Ordinary People," released early in his career, and "All Of Me," which debuted in 2013.
John Legend has a net worth of $45 million.
Chris Brown - $50 Million
Chris Brown made his musical debut in 2006. His thirteen year career has produced hit singles like "Run It," "Kiss Kiss," and "No Air."
In addition to singing, Chris Brown has also cultivated an impressive songwriting and producing career, as well as an acting career. He has appeared in movies like Stomp The Yard, This Christmas, and Taken.
He is worth around $50 million.
Alicia Keys - $70 Million
Alicia Keys has been gifting the world with her beautiful voice since 2001. Her debut album, Songs In A Minor spawned the hit single, "Fallin" - a song that sold over 12 million copies and is still, to this day, a favorite audition song for aspiring singers. It also earned her five Grammy Awards.
Alicia's success has slowed down a little in recent years, but she's still releasing popular music. One of her biggest hits in recent years is "Girl On Fire" from 2012. She also writes and plays a variety of instruments.
Alicia Keys' net worth is $70 million dollars.
Usher - $180 Million
Usher was one of the most popular, if not the most popular, young male R&B singers of the late 90s and 00s. Some of his most popular hits include songs like "My Way," "U Remind Me," and "You Make Me Wanna."
In 2004, Usher released Confessions - his most successful release of all time. The album, which sold over 1.1 milion copies during its first week's release, spawned hits like "Confessions," "Yeah," and "Burn."
Usher is reportedly worth $180 million.
Lionel Richie - $200 Million
Lionel Richie has more than earned his title as a living legend. He started out his career in 1969 as as member of The Commodores, who produced hit songs like "Brick House" and "Three Times A Lady." With Lionel's solo career came classics like "Truly" and "You Are My Love."
In addition to singing, Lionel Richie as also seen great success as a song writer. His most famous song writing credit comes from "We Are The World," which he co-wrote with Michael Jackson in 1984. In 2016, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame.
Lionel Richie is worth $200 million.
Bey0nce - $350 Million
Beyonce is not only one of the most popular, recognizable celebrities on the planet, she's also the second most successful R&B artists of all time. In recent years, Beyonce has incorporated more Pop and African influences into her music, but make no mistake about it, her roots are R&B.
The singer got her big break in 1998 when Destiny's Child debuted their fist album, The Writing On The Wall, which spawned hit singles "Bills, Bills, Bills," and "Say My Name." Despite changes within the group, and rumors of impending breakups, Destiny's child enjoyed a seven year run, which saw them become on of the most popular girl groups of all time. In the time since, Beyonce has gone solo and basically taken over the world.
She is worth $350 million.
Rihanna - $600 Million
Rihanna is easily the richest R&B singer of right now. Even though her musical inspirations include everything from pop to reggae, to even hip hop, she's consistently included R&B elements in her music.
Rihanna got her start in 2005, when she released her debut album, Music Of The Sun, which spawned her first single, "Pon de Re Play." But it wasn't until 2007, when she released Good Girl Gone Bad, which produced "Umbrella." that Rihanna's ascent to musical royalty started. Since then, Rihanna has basically released hit after hit. Some of her most popular records include "What's My Name," "Diamond," "Stay," and, more recently, "Work."
Rihanna is reportedly worth $600 million.