Zack O'Malley Greenburg's Blog, page 15

Music Money Winners And Losers 2018

Kendrick Lamar pulled in a career-best $58 million in our 2018 rankings. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)

As the days dwindle in December, writers flood the internet with rankings of the year’s best music. While other outlets may debate albums like Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour, Pusha T’s Daytona and Janelle Monae’s Dirty Computer, none of those artists are even in the discussion when it comes to earnings, for better or worse (quite likely for worse, but that’s a different discussion). So whi...

Third Eye Burrito: How A Bassist And His Brother Built Dos Toros

Burrito Brothers: Leo And Oliver Kremer in New York.

On a chilly afternoon in New York’s Greenwich Village, Dos Toros on Carmine Street is doing its best Northern California impression. Sun streams through the wide windows, splashing light across a framed picture of Berkeley burrito haunt Gordo Taqueria as the strains of Bay Area band Third Eye Blind’s “Never Let You Go” blare over the speakers: “I remember the stupid things, the mood rings, the bracelets and the beads. …”

The California vibe...

Shaq’s Fun House: A Super-Size Super Bowl Party With Long-Term Ambitions

Shaquille O’Neal at his inaugural Fun House Event in Miami with Rob Gronkowski, Steve Aoki, A-Trak and DJ Irie.

When Shaquille O’Neal launched his first-ever Shaq’s Fun House earlier this year, he lured performers from Steve Aoki to Diplo; the event culminated with the NBA Hall of Famer giving the Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski a viral piggy-back ride. It’s only fitting that the sequel will be held somewhere Gronk surely wants to go: Atlanta during Super Bowl weekend.

Shaq’s Fun House is set to tak...

The World’s Highest-Paid Musicians Of 2018

Bono of U2 performs in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by Kieran Frost/Redferns)

U2 released Joshua Tree more than three decades ago, planting lasting roots. The immortal Irishmen played the album in its entirety at every show on their recent Joshua Tree Tour—and grossed $316 million as some 2.7 million fans turned out to make it last year’s most lucrative tour.

The tail end of that outing and the beginning of U2’s next tour combined to help the band earn an estimated $118 million in our scoring peri...

Taylor Swift’s New Record Deal Could Pay As Much As $200M [Updated]

Swift has something extra to sing about today. (Photo by Don Arnold/TAS18/Getty Images)

Taylor Swift started the day with good news, landing the No. 2 spot on Forbes’ list of the top-earning women in music. Within minutes, she had one-upped herself, announcing a new record deal with Universal Music Group’s Republic Records. Though terms were not officially released, the pact could be worth anywhere from $100 million in guarantees to perhaps $200 million, Forbes has learned from multiple sourc...

The World’s Highest-Paid Women In Music 2018

Back in 2015, when Katy Perry appeared on the cover of Forbes after earning $135 million in a single year, she knew she’d secured her place in the pop star firmament—and wouldn’t ever have to worry about fading into oblivion. “I don’t feel like my career is a ticking time bomb,” she said. “I don’t feel like I’ll always have to be feeding the meter of show business. I got my spot, yo.”

Three years later, Perry has proved herself right: She’s the highest-paid woman in music, pulling in $83 mil...

Lauren Jauregui: 11 Questions With The 30 Under 30 Music Star

Lauren Jauregui: Part of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Music Class of 2019.

A former member of smash singing group Fifth Harmony, Jauregui is in the midst of a successful move into a career of her own—as both a musician and a humanitarian. She’s leveraged her 12 million-plus social followers in her quest for a range of causes.

“From immigration reform to women’s and LGBTQ rights and basic human decency, Lauren wants to be on the right side of history, and it’s inspiring to watch her fight for what s...

Meet Billie Eilish, The 30 Under 30 Music Sensation Poised To Pop

Billie Eilish: One of just a handful of teenagers to make the Under 30 list.

The 16-year-old singer-songwriter got on the map with her 2016 single, “Ocean Eyes,” boosting her debut EP to more than 1.5 billion streaming spins worldwide. She has since collaborated with 30 Under 30 alum Khalid while gearing up for her studio debut, expected later this year.

Now she can add another honor to her résumé: a place on the 30 Under 30 Class of 2019 in the Music category. Like several of her peers on th...

Camila Cabello: 10 Questions With The 30 Under 30 Singer

Camila Cabello, 21, capped a massive year by landing in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Music Class of 2019. (ANDER GILLENEA/AFP/Getty Images)

After getting her start with supergroup Fifth Harmony, the Cuban-born singer-songwriter exploded onto the scene with last year’s chart-topping single “Havana.” Cabello’s solo album, Camila, debuted in January 2018 atop the Billboard 200—making her the first artist in 15 years to hold the top spot on the singles and albums charts simultaneously.

She can add anot...

Meet Grace VanderWaal, The Youngest 30 Under 30 Music List Member Ever

Grace VanderWaal: The singer-songwriter-actress is the youngest musician ever to appear on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

After winning America’s Got Talent in 2016, Grace VanderWaal released the year’s top-selling EP, Perfectly Imperfect. She has since accumulated more than 675 million streams worldwide and gained some 8 million social followers. The singer-songwriter toured with Imagine Dragons this past summer and is releasing her own line of Fender ukuleles this fall.

Now, at age 14, her in...