Maceo Parker Highest-Paid Musician in the World

By Carol Kearney
Washington
Last updated on April 18, 2025

Maceo Parker 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. 82-year-old Maceo Parker has taken the No. 1 spot on People With Money’s top 10 highest-paid musicians for 2025 with an estimated $82 million in combined earnings.

UPDATE 18/04/2025 : This story seems to be false. (read more)

Maceo Parker 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 (April 17) that Parker is the highest-paid musician in the world, pulling in an astonishing $82 million between March 2024 and March 2025, a nearly $50 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-singer has an estimated net worth of $245 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 Parker Burger” chain) in Washington, a Football Team (the “Kinston Angels”), has launched his own brand of Vodka (Pure Wonderparker - US), and is tackling the juniors market with a top-selling perfume (With Love from Maceo) and a fashion line called “Maceo Parker Seduction”.

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