Jay-Z is one of the richest men in the rap game and, during the course of his career, he has made sure that he's not just known for his ability to dominate on the music scene. He has invested in various business ventures and has proven his capabilities as a brilliant business man as well. Prior to this week, Jay-Z had already attained billionaire status, but now, thanks to inking 2 big deals over the course of two short weeks, he has added enormous wealth to his fortune - now worth an astonishing $1.4 million.
The BBC reports on just how significantly his bottom line has increased overnight.
Taking no changes with his wealth, and focused solely on financial gain, Jay-Z made the headlines for signing a contract that sees him selling a majority stake in his labor of love; a music streaming company called Tidal. Considered to be truly revolutionary at the time of its conception, this new deal sees Jack Dorsey's mobile payment company, Square, dishing out $297 million as part of the stake takeover.
Forbes reports that Tidal’s “artist shareholders will continue to have a stake in the company, and Jay-Z will own a small percentage, as well." Tidal continues to be one of the world's most successful streaming platforms. There are over 60 million songs that belong to Tidal, which are available through a subscription services for users across the globe.
While the Tidal sell-off was certainly a huge step in accumulating additional wealth for Jay-Z, and is easily one of the biggest deals in the music industry, it's merely one of the deals that Jay-Z has sealed this week.
Jay-Z seems to be fixated on making big business moves in 2021, as the huge sale of the majority of his stakes in Tidal came just a week after another big sell-off. In recent days, he sold over half of his Armand de Brignac champagne company to to LVMH in a deal that, according to Forbes, "valued the luxury liquor company at about $640 million."
LVMH, otherwise known as Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, now owns a 50% stake in Jay-Z's company. Armand de Brignac champagne is affectionately referred to by Jay-Z's fans as; "The Ace of Spades". This is mostly due to its packaging, which showcases the ace of spades on the sleek metallic bottle.
According to the BBC, this champagne has been "the bubbly of choice for some sports championship celebrations in the US and won accolades at international taste testing competitions."
Jay-Z remains involved in both corporations, just to a lesser degree now. This doesn't seem like too much of a sacrifice, considering how much additional padded income Jay-Z has just walked away with.