
In a 1993 article written by David Harrop, it was suggested that McCartney had been making more than British Airways.?
?Paul McCartney is history’s most commercially successful musician?? by far the wealthiest of the ex Beatles???and one of the world’s richest men,? he said. This fact doesn’t seem to have changed. But surely McCartney’s success didn’t rest solely on the laurels of his musical talent? After all, the title of entrepreneur seems to go hand-in-hand with his name these days. McCartney was involved with the renovation of the?counterculture art gallery?Indica Gallery, located in the basement of the Indica Bookshop co-owned by John Dubar, Peter Asher and Barry Miles. Although he may not have come up with the idea, he invested heavily in the project. He also helped Miles start an underground paper called the International Times, which caused a publishing revolution. Of course, he also founded Apple Corps with his fellow Beatles, not to mention MPL, his own music publishing company. He also owned a 20 per cent stake in Northern Songs before selling it. What has most likely been the biggest source of his income, however, was a?music publishing?catalogue with access to over 25,000 copyrights, including the publishing rights to the musicals?Guys and Dolls,?A Chorus Line,?Annie?and?Grease. It puts him well ahead of his nearest rival on the Rich List, Andrew Lloyd-Webber, who is estimated to be worth ?650m. Read more about the music industry:- Brit Awards show why the music industry is a runner-up for best export category
- British musicians to receive export funding
- New EIS ventures into music industry
But his latest venture has seen him add venture capital to his list of investment methods by becoming an advisor to TPG Capital. The Edege and Bono have also joined the board of directors for Fender Musical instruments Corporation, the company behind the legendary Fender guitar lines. Elton John and Mick Jagger follow with their own fortunes, said to be worth ?270m and ?225m respectively. The latter made a jump from music to movies in 1995 by co-founding Jagged Films with Victoria Pearman. That’s right, he became a film producer. But that’s where the list falls flat, and where music royalties reign supreme. However, this may not be a bad sign. In fact, it may suggest how lucrative the UK music market truly is. Unlike various celebrity markets such as sports, whereby age is a crucial factor, artists can continue to gain income from work they produced some 20 years ago. That only half of the list have delved into the entrepreneurial world is perhaps a good thing for the UK economy.
Read more on celebrities in business:
- 5 famous businesses that bizarrely hired celebrities
- The 6 most inspiring hip hop entrepreneurs
- 6 British musicians turned entrepreneurs
- Paul McCartney????730m
- Andrew Lloyd-Webber??? ?650m
- U2????431m
- Elton John????270m
- Mick Jagger????225m
- Keith Richards????210 m
- Michael Flatley????195m
- Ringo Starr????180m
- Sting????180m
- Roger Waters????160m
Share this story