There’s no doubt that each and every time you head to a club, there’s a Rihanna song you just can’t help but get down to. Since RiRi broke onto the scene in 2005 with “Pon De Replay,” she’s been turning out hit song after hit song for over a decade. Not only is she always on our playlists, but she’s become one of the most gossiped about stars in Hollywood. She’s a long way from her native Barbados now! But how much has Rihanna’s fame earned her?
Rihanna’s Net Worth as of 2018: $165 million
Try to wrap your head around that as we break down Rihanna’s album sales, tours, and more that contributed to her millions.
2004 – 2006
Rihanna was discovered in her home country of Barbados by American record producer Evan Rogers. Rogers took her to New York, accompanied by her mother, to record some demo tapes when she was only 16 years old.
Jay Z, who had recently been appointed as president and CEO of Def Jam Recordings responded to Rihanna’s demo. He was a bit skeptical about signing Rihanna, but he invited her to audition for him and music mogul L.A. Reid. The audition resulted in Rihanna signing a six-album record deal with Def Jam in February 2005.
Rihanna’s debut studio album, Music of the Sun, was released in August 2005. With help from the first hit single “Pon De Replay,” the album sold over two million copies worldwide and reportedly earned Rihanna about $5,217,000.
Aside from her work in music, Rihanna made a cameo appearance in the straight-to-DVD film Bring It On: All or Nothing, released in August 2006.
Wasting no time, Rihanna began working on her second studio album. A Girl like Me was released in April 2006. The album was a commercial success, charting in the top 10 in 13 countries. The lead single, “SOS,” was an international success, charting in the top five in 11 countries. Her second album made a reported $6,153,000.
Following the release of the album, Rihanna embarked on her first headlining tour, the Rihanna: Live in Concert Tour.
2007 – 2009
In early 2007, Rihanna began work on her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad. She worked with producers like Timbaland, will.i.am and Sean Garrett to release the album in May 2007. The album received the most positive critical reviews of her first three albums. The lead single, “Umbrella,” topped the charts in thirteen countries. The songs “Shut Up and Drive,” “Hate That I Love You” featuring Ne-Yo, and “Don’t Stop the Music” were also released as singles. Good Girl Gone Bad reportedly earned Rihanna $6,857,000.
Rihanna started the Good Girl Gone Bad Tour in September 2007, with 80 shows across the United States, Canada, and Europe.
Throughout 2008, Rihanna performed on the Glow in the Dark Tour alongside Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D. Her third studio album’s reissue, Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, was released in June 2008 with three new songs: “Disturbia,” “Take a Bow,” and the Maroon 5 duet “If I Never See Your Face Again.”
In early 2009, Rihanna began working on her fourth studio album, Rated R. Rated R was released in November 2009 and debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart. The album brought in a reported earnings of $7,500,000.
To promote the album, Rihanna hit the road on her second worldwide tour, the Last Girl on Earth Tour. She earned an estimated $410,000 per show.
2010 – 2011
Loud, Rihanna’s fifth studio album, was released in November 2010. It included the hit singles “Only Girl (In the World),” “What’s My Name?” featuring rapper Drake, and “S&M.” Her reported earning from the album reach an amazing $10,000,000.
In 2011, Rihanna released a perfume, Reb’l Fleur. She got gross revenue from the fragrance, estimated to be about $30 million.
Rihanna embarked on her Loud Tour in June 2011, which sold out ten nights at The O2 Arena in London, the most sold out shows for a female artist in the venue’s history. Ticket sales from Loud Tour totaled an estimated $90,000,000.
Rihanna’s sixth album, Talk That Talk was released in November 2011. The lead single, “We Found Love,” topped charts in 27 countries worldwide and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for ten non-consecutive weeks, becoming Rihanna’s longest-running number one single.
In the year 2011, she had total earnings of $30 million.
2012 – 2013
Rihanna was featured in two collaborations in early 2012 – Coldplay’s “Princess of China” and Drake’s “Take Care.”
Rihanna starred as Petty Officer (GM2) Cora Raikes in her first theatrical feature film Battleship, released on May 18, 2012. The film had poor reviews.
Unapologetic, her seventh studio album, was released in November 2012. Singles such as “Diamonds” and “Stay” added to the album’s hype. As promotion prior to the album’s release, Rihanna embarked on the 777 Tour, a mini tour of seven shows in seven countries in seven days. A documentary DVD of the tour was later released.
Rihanna’s fifth headlining concert tour, the Diamonds World Tour, began in March 2013 in support of Unapologetic.
She received a per performance fee of $800,000, sold her Pacific Palisades mansion for $120,000,000, and earned approximately $6,300,000 from the sales of three million copies of Unapologetic album sales. This resulted in $53 million in earnings in 2013.
2014 – 2018
Rihanna made $26 million from June 2014 to June 2015, ranking her as 10th-highest paid among female musicians over that time span. The impressive part is that she earned all that money despite playing just nine concerts during that year.
In January 2015, Rihanna released the single, “FourFiveSeconds” featuring Kanye West and Paul McCartney. Two more singles were released throughout the year, “Bitch Better Have My Money” and “American Oxygen,” but they did not make the final track listing for her eighth studio album.
On August 13, 2015, it was announced that Rihanna would be joining the ninth season of The Voice as the main advisor in October 2015.
On January 28, 2016, Rihanna released her eighth studio album, Anti, exclusively through streaming service Tidal.
With plenty of Grammys, hit songs, and amazing concerts already behind her, we can’t wait to see what RiRi does next to add to her massive bank account.