Jay-Z tops Forbes' "Hip-Hop Cash Kings"

Big things poppin' in hip-hop. Jay-Z has not only risen to the best MC of all time, he is now the most wealthiest MC also. With endorsement deals with Budweiser, HP (niggas spendin' 10 million in media on my hands), and GM....the boy has raked in $34 million. At number 2 is Mr. Curtis with $32 million (I guess Vitamin Water is all its caked up to be, eh?). Diddy brung in $28 million.

Source: Forbes

While most of us look forward to retirement, Shawn Carter, better known to the planet as master rapper Jay-Z, couldn't stand the view from the sidelines following his 2003 farewell The Black Album. Despite a frenetic schedule as president of Def Jam Recordings and co-founder of its ultra-successful Roc-A-Fella Records imprint, Jay-Z managed to squeeze in a comeback last year with Kingdom Come, his 11th studio album, which debuted at the top of the pop and rap music charts, selling some 2 million copies.

But those weren't the only paychecks coming in. Jay-Z also owns the 40/40 Club sports bar franchise, with locations in New York and Atlanta, and a small stake in the NBA's New Jersey Nets. (He's often photographed in courtside seats alongside his girlfriend, pop superstar Beyoncé.) Plus the native New Yorker (from Brooklyn's hardscrabble Marcy Projects) collects income from blue-chip endorsement deals with Budweiser, Hewlett-Packard (nyse: HPQ - news - people ), and General Motors (nyse: GM - news - people ). All told, Jay-Z banked an estimated $34 million in 2006, earning him the top spot on Forbes' first-ever list of hip-hop Cash Kings.