Katy Perry
American singer Katy Perry appears to be thinking of her legacy. The 38-year-old recently sold a part of her music rights to Litmus Music under a “creative partnership”, according to the Carlyle-backed company.
The agreement was reportedly valued at $225 million and represents the year’s biggest catalogue deal for a single artist, Billboard magazine said. Carlyle did not publicly confirm the size of the deal.
Perry’s deal covers her stake in master recordings and publishing rights for five albums released between 2008 and 2020. The records are One of the Boys, Teenage Dream, Prism, Witness, and Smile. Together, the five albums represent 16 multiplatinum hits.
Universal Music Group continues to own the masters for those albums.
The sale of music rights has boomed in recent years, with older artists such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Tina Turner selling part or all of their catalogues to companies such as Hipgnosis, Sony and BMG.
Katy Perry style evolution – in pictures
Now, younger singers are also cashing in. This year alone, Dr. Dre and Justin Bieber both sold a portion of their rights and royalties for approximately $200 million.
Perry now has a net worth of $340 million following the sale and is one of the richest self-made women in the US, according to estimates by Forbes magazine.
The California native has sold the equivalent of more than 65 million albums, including physical, digital and streaming units, according to music database Chartmasters.
She has not released a song since 2020’s Smile. Her residency in Las Vegas will wrap up in November. Unconfirmed estimates put its gross takings at $168 million.
Perry's tours regularly gross in the millions, with the 2014-2015 Prismatic world tour grossing $204.3 million from 149 shows, according to trade publication Pollstar.
Perry is also currently filming Season 22 of American Idol, where she returns as a judge. Her annual salary for the show was $25 million in 2020, Celebrity Net Worth reports.
Outside of entertainment, Perry owns shoe brand Katy Perry Collections and non-alcoholic beverage De Soi.
Over the past decade, the I Kissed A Girl singer has bought and sold at least two properties in Beverly Hills, and two others in Los Angeles’ Runyon Canyon, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Along with husband Orlando Bloom, they bought a nearly 3.6-hectare estate in Montecito, California.
The couple purchased the property for $14.2 million in 2020 but its seller, former equity manager Carl Westcott, has disputed the sale.
Separately, Perry has made at least eight private equity investments, according to investor platform Crunchbase.
Among them are several food brands, including vegan meat company Impossible Foods, food science start-up Apeel Sciences, and Shef.
In 2021, she also took part in a $5 million fundraising round for blockchain-enabled music platform Audius alongside Jason Derulo, Nas and The Chainsmokers.
Deepika Padukone
Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone has taken an undisclosed stake in Indian speciality coffee chain Blue Tokai.
Padukone’s Ka Enterprises investment vehicle joined a Series B funding round held earlier this year, according to media reports in India.
Led by A91 Partners, the round raised $30 million. Other investors included Anicut Capital, 8i Ventures, DSP Blackrock, Negen Capital, Mauryan Capital and White Whale Ventures.
“We have followed the brand’s growth very closely over the past decade and observed their vision and commitment to quality and innovation and are therefore thrilled to partner with them,” Padukone said.
The value of Padukone’s investment has not been disclosed.
Blue Tokai operates in India and Japan. It has four roasteries and more than 80 outlets.
Padukone, 37, has a net worth of 5 billion Indian rupees ($60 million) and has become one of India’s highest-paid actors since she made her film debut in 2006, according to India’s DNA newspaper.
She has since appeared in nearly 40 films, including this year's Pathaan with Shah Rukh Khan. The movie has made more than 1 billion rupees in global box-office takings.
Ka Enterprises, which Padukone set up in 2014, has invested in a broad range of start-ups.
Among them are plant-based yoghurt Epigamia, luggage retailer Mokobara, office furniture rental company Furlenco, household appliance manufacturer Atomberg Technologies, ride-sharing start-up Blu Smart, space tech manufacturer Bellatrix, the learning platform Front Row, and FemTech brand Nua.
Padukone owns an 11,260-square-foot apartment spread over four floors in Mumbai with her husband, actor Ranveer Singh, as well as a home in Bengaluru.
Huda Kattan
Dubai-based beauty entrepreneur Huda Kattan is among the top influencers of the year, with earnings of $13 million over the past 12 months, according to a new compilation by Forbes.
The magazine puts Kattan at number 15 on its annual list of social media creators.
The biggest-earning social media creator over the past year is MrBeast. The YouTube creator, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, has earned $82 million in the past 12 months.
His high-production videos and stunts have earned him 312 million followers across different social media platforms.
Kattan, who has 69 million followers, has a net worth of $400 million, the magazine said.
The 39-year-old Iraqi-American celebrity make-up artist shot to fame with her Huda Beauty blog.
Its success led her to launch cosmetic brand Huda Beauty with her sisters, Mona and Alya. The brand is sold around the world, including in department stores such as Harrods and Sephora.
In 2020, Kattan launched a skincare brand, Wishful Skincare.
Two years earlier, Kattan and her sisters set up HBI Investments, a private investment office that aims to support digitally enabled brands.
The firm has since taken a stake in at least eight brands, including cloud kitchen Kitopi, quick-learning app Uptime, online salon booking platform Fresha, resale marketplace The Luxury Closet and London-based fashion brand Urbanic, according to the HB Investments website.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Football star Cristiano Ronaldo is now investing in padel, the racquet sport that became popular during the pandemic.
Together with businessman Filipe de Botton, the Portuguese national last month won a tender to build the Cidado do Padel complex in the municipality of Oeiras, in the Lisbon metropolitan area.
They will invest a reported €5 million ($5.2 million) to construct 17 padel courts on a plot of about 15,000 square metres.
Intended as an international venue for padel, the project is being designed to host tournaments. It is set for completion in 2025.
Ronaldo, 38, has a net worth estimated at $500 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner was the world’s highest paid athlete with earnings of $136 million before tax in the 12 months to May, according to Forbes.
Watch: Cristiano Ronaldo wears traditional Saudi dress in Al Nassr video
Cristiano Ronaldo wears traditional Saudi dress in Al Nassr video
While $46 million came from his salary, endorsements, licensing income, appearances and other business ventures added another $90 million.
He has a lifetime deal with Nike, as well as other sponsors, including Binance, Herbalife, Louis Vuitton, TAG Heuer and Unilever.
He has 850 million followers across social media, and became the first footballer to cross $1 billion in career earnings in 2020.
In July, Ronaldo took a stake in Chrono24, the online marketplace for luxury watches.
Besides his CR7 clothing, accessories and fragrance lines, he has also invested in CR7 Hotels, a joint venture with the Pestana Hotels Group.
