I wasn’t born or raised in the Bronx, the birthplace of rap and hip-hop. I did not go to underground rap battles. I don’t spit bars. I only watched some rap artists blow up to make lots of money. However, I have gathered enough data to hold a talk on the topic “How do rappers make money”? How to make money as a rapper, and exactly how much rappers make.
You might think rappers earn a lot of money from streams. But rappers only make about $4 per 1000 streams on Spotify.
There are other ways how rappers make money such as:
1. Merchandise on Shopify
2. Touring / Live Shows (biggest money)
3. Selling beats / freelance producing
4. Brand partnerships
5. YouTube
6. Crowdfunding
And many other ways.
How Rappers Make Money
You already know about billionaire rappers like Jay-Z and other commercially successful rappers like Drake, Lil Wayne, Kanye West, and more. So let us take a look at how an independent rapper makes money.
Russ AKA Russell James Vitale is an indie lyricist. He began independent, secured a record deal with Columbia, but went back to being an independent rapper.
His single, “Best on Earth” with Bia hit number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song is certified 2x Multi-Platinum. Here is how Russ and other rappers make money.
1. YouTube Ads
Russ earns money when you see ads on his YouTube videos.
His YouTube video “Best on Earth” has generated over a million dollars. Russ earns money whenever people see the ads that YouTube shows on his channel.
When you permit YouTube to show ads on your videos, you get paid. How much do you earn from YouTube as a rapper? Rappers earn between $5 to $30 per 1,000 views from those advertisements.
So if you make a rap video with a million views, you could make 30,000 dollars.
Earn money on your rap videos using these methods as well:
- Ask fans for their email addresses for your email newsletter
- Market merchandise
- Promote your touring schedule
- Promote your Cameo
- Promote your Patreon
Here are other means to make 10k a month (and for those of you that like to think BIG: How to make 50k a month).
On your YouTube, ensure to direct people to your website. Use the best small business website design to treat your craft like the real business that it is!
2. Teach Others to Rap and Write Rhymes
Wonder how rappers generate income? Here is an unusual way to make money as a rapper: upload videos teaching people how to rap and write lyrics!
As a rapper, you know your fans respect your craft. You have fans who want to learn how to write lyrics, freestyle rap, or produce their beats. So you can teach them and get paid.
Post your tutorial videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
Tell your social media followers that you’re selling a video course on Skool or Teachable.
These online learning platforms make it easy to promote your rap class, accept money, and create a community.
You can also host free webinars to answer questions live. Encourage these aspiring rappers to sign up for your paid course. Here is the best webinar software to use.
3. Sync Deals / Licensing / Broadcasts
How do rappers earn money without leaving home? Sync deals!
Synchronized licensing is when the rapper gets paid for allowing his or her song to be played in a movie, or television show, or video game.
4. Create a Newsletter
Gaining followers for your rap music on Instagram, TikTok, etc., is a great way to find new fans. But boom! The social media platform changes its algorithm and now they hide your posts. Or they shadow-ban your account or block you for whatever reason.
- Protect ya neck (Wu-Tang Forever!) from changing social media algorithms with an email newsletter.
- This is how you’ll be sure your rap fans get all your new tour dates, new merchandise for sale, and new songs.
- Use ConvertKit for your email newsletter. It’s the best and it’s affordable.
5. Sponsorships / Brand Partnerships
How do rappers earn money with brand partnerships? Check out which rappers already have sponsorships. Then contact those organizations to let them know you are open to doing a similar deal.
Another way for rappers to earn money is to submit UGC (User Generated Content) to brands.
See if brands you love take UGC submissions. As a rapper, you will be making money like an influencer or micro-influencer.
A mega influencer is one of those good jobs that pay 1 million dollars a month.
5. Live Performances / Tours
The way to earn the most money as a rapper is by selling concert tickets. Rappers usually earn about 85% of each ticket sold.
Rapper J Cole makes about $2 million per concert.
When 21 Savage first made it big, he was making $25,000 dollars for each performance. Now 21 Savage can make a million dollars per show or more.
Rappers with enough fans should look for a tour manager and booking agent to help set up a tour.
On tour, you will sell merch like t-shirts, hats, and hardcore gangsta coffee mugs.
Bottom Line
Rappers make their money through various means. The most popular are the streaming platforms, YouTube ads, the selling of CDs, tours, concerts, endorsement deals, and shows.
As a rapper, you need to maximize your earning avenues to be financially active. Kindly drop us a comment in the section below if you have any, concerning this article.