Ten rock and metal acts made major bank in 2020 amid an unprecedented year that saw virtually no revenue from touring due to restrictions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. But they mostly trailed among the top-earning musicians in 2020 overall, who largely dominated pop music.
Still, for longtime rock fans and metalheads, the influential bands who made the new list of the 40 best-paid artists in the United States last year may not come as any shock. The names are all rock and metal artists who’ve been entrenched in global rock culture for several decades now.
Starting with the highest-earning and descending, those bands were the Eagles ($16.3 million), Queen ($13.2 million), The Beatles ($12.9 million), AC/DC ($10.1 million), Metallica ($9 million), Pink Floyd ($8.8 million), Tool ($6.17 million), KISS ($6 million), The Rolling Stones ($5.69 million) and Aerosmith ($5.35 million). That’s according to Billboard‘s 2020 ranking, published this year on July 19.
The Top 10 highest paid in pop and beyond were Taylor Swift ($23.8 million), Post Malone ($23.2 million), Celine Dion ($17.5 million), Billie Eilish ($14.7 million), Drake ($14.2 million), NBA YoungBoy ($11.9 million), Lil Baby ($11.7 million), The Weeknd ($10.4 million), Aventura ($10.2 million) and Eminem ($9.7 million).
But for as high as they are, the sums all represent a drop from previous years. As Billboard reported, it’s “no surprise that the dearth of live revenue led to a precipitous decline in the paychecks of music’s top earners, who collectively took home $387 million in 2020, down from $969 million in 2019. Even Swift, that rare artist with strong sales, streaming and touring numbers, saw her take-home pay drop from $99.6 million in 2018 — the last time she was on the list — to $23.8 million.”
Below, see the ten rock and metal bands among the lot:
The Highest Paid Rock + Metal Bands of 2020 (From Billboard‘s Top Paid Artists 2020 List)
4. Eagles ($16.3 million)
Streaming: $2.7M
Sales: $970K
Publishing: $1.2M
Touring: $11.4M
7. Queen ($13.2 million)
Streaming: $5.5M
Sales: $5.3M
Publishing: $2.4M
Touring: $0
8. The Beatles ($12.9 million)
Streaming: $5.1M
Sales: $5.2M
Publishing: $2.6M
Touring: $0
13. AC/DC ($10.1 million)
Streaming: $4.3M
Sales: $4M
Publishing: $1.8M
Touring: $0
18. Metallica ($9 million)
Streaming: $3.9M
Sales: $3.7M
Publishing: $1.4M
Touring: $0
20. Pink Floyd ($8.8 million)
Streaming: $3.2M
Sales: $4.3M
Publishing: $1.3M
Touring: $0
32. Tool ($6.17 million)
Streaming: $823.4K
Sales: $557K
Publishing: $611K
Touring: $4.2M
33. KISS ($6 million)
Streaming: $431K
Sales: $348K
Publishing: $194.5K
Touring: $5M
34. The Rolling Stones ($5.69 million)
Streaming: $2.97M
Sales: $1.8M
Publishing: $1.17M
Touring: $0
40. Aerosmith ($5.35 million)
Streaming: $1.33M
Sales: $564K
Publishing: $840K
Touring: $2.7M
2021’s Best Rock + Metal Albums (So Far)
Loudwire’s picks for the best rock + metal albums of 2021 so far
