Jennifer Lopez Tops Forbes’ Celebrity 100 List
Is Jennifer Lopez the most powerful celebrity in the world? Forbes magazine thinks so and has placed J.Lo atop its Celebrity 100 list, citing her “stunning career reinvention” as a judge on ‘American Idol’ and her renewed success as a performer.
Lopez pocketed $52 million over the past 12 months to beat out megastars like Oprah Winfrey, Justin Bieber and Tom Cruise for the No. 1 spot. Forbes credits Lopez for landing endorsement deals and perfume and clothing lines just a couple years after her career seemed to be in trouble following a series of album and movie failures.
The magazine noted that J. Lo has huge followings on Facebook and Twitter, making her one of the queens of social media, a factor that helped her achieve the No. 1 ranking. Unlike most Forbes lists, this one isn’t based strictly on income, but rather on a subjective analysis of fame, which the magazine defines as “media visibility in print, television, radio and online, plus social media power, which we measure by looking at each celebrity’s presence on Facebook and Twitter.”
Oprah places second, just ahead of Bieber, who graces the cover. The Biebs raked in a whopping $55 million, a figure that could go up next year with the release of his upcoming ‘Believe’ album. Forbes credits Bieber for his often-overlooked business dealings, noting that he has stakes in Spotify and Tinychat.
Three of pop music’s biggest female artists hold down spots 4-6: Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Britney Spears, while Katy Perry comes in at No. 8. Other artists who rank highly include Taylor Swift (No. 11), Beyonce (No. 17), Adele (No. 24), Jay-Z (No. 38) and Kanye West (No. 45).