Donald Fagen Highest-Paid Musician in the World

By Carol Kearney
Washington
Last updated on May 9, 2025

Donald Fagen led People With Money’s annual list of the “100 highest paid musicians” released on Thursday.

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It's been a rough year for the musician, but at least he has his millions of dollars to ease the pain. 77-year-old Donald Fagen has taken the No. 1 spot on People With Money’s top 10 highest-paid musicians for 2025 with an estimated $46 million in combined earnings.

UPDATE 09/05/2025 : This story seems to be false. (read more)

Donald Fagen tops annual list of highest-paid musicians

In 2022 it looked like the musician’s spectacular career was winding down. Suddenly, he was back on top. People With Money reports on Thursday (May 8) that Fagen is the highest-paid musician in the world, pulling in an astonishing $46 million between April 2024 and April 2025, a nearly $20 million lead over his closest competition.

People With Money’s factors

In compiling this yearly list, the magazine considers factors such as upfront pay, profit participation, residuals, endorsements and advertising work.

The American musician has an estimated net worth of $145 million. He owes his fortune to smart stock investments, substantial property holdings, lucrative endorsement deals with CoverGirl cosmetics. He also owns several restaurants (the “Fat Fagen Burger” chain) in Washington, a Football Team (the “Passaic Angels”), has launched his own brand of Vodka (Pure Wonderfagen - US), and is tackling the juniors market with a top-selling perfume (With Love from Donald) and a fashion line called “Donald Fagen Seduction”.

The ranking is significant for many Donald fans, who have been waiting for his triumphant return to the glory days for what seems like a lifetime.