Drake Net Worth

How Is The Drake Net Worth $180 Million? - The Success Bug
 

Have you ever wondered what Drake’s net worth is? As one of this generation’s most prominent names in Hip-Hop, the man has created quite the resume. 

Many people solely know Drake because of his music. However, most don’t know how this star leveraged his personal brand through entrepreneurship. 

As of May 2023, Drake has a net worth of $250 million. In this post, we show you how this superstar made his millions. 

Early Life

Aubrey Drake Graham was born in Toronto, Canada, on October 24, 1986. His father was a drummer, and his mother was an English teacher. 

Growing up, Drake attended a Jewish day school and even had a formal Bar Mitzvah celebration. 

Eventually, Drake’s parents divorced, causing Drake’s father to be largely absent in his son’s life.

From around sixth grade onward, Drake and his mother lived in a small apartment in an affluent neighborhood where Drake’s mother struggled to make ends meet. 

Drake attended Forest Hills Collegiate Institute during this time, where he found a strong passion for the arts. 

While he excelled in both acting and singing, Drake found himself a target of bullying for his bi-racial and religious background. 

This caused Drake massive hardship, resulting in him dropping out but eventually returning to graduate in 2012. 

Degrassi: The Next Generation

drake net worth

At the age of 15, Drake landed himself a spot on Canadian television. He landed a leading role on the Canadian teen drama show “Degrassi: The Next Generation.” 

Drake played the character of Jimmy Brooks, a basketball star who becomes wheelchair-bound after he’s shot by a classmate. 

Drake was on “Degrassi” for seven seasons and 136 episodes. His role on the show earned him two Young Artist Award nominations. At the time, Drake’s mother became very ill. 

The only money the two had to live off of was the acting paychecks Drake would receive. This was roughly $50,000 a year, or $2000 a month post taxes. 

Drake describes this time as difficult yet influential in his hunger for more success. 

Music Career

Drake kickstarted his music career in 2005 on MySpace, releasing his first mixtape, “Room for Improvement.” 

He was able to sell an astounding 6,000 copies directly after its release.

Comeback Season

drake net worth

The singer fired back with another mixtape the following year titled “Comeback Season.” 

This time, the mixtape was released via his newly opened label, October’s Very Own (OVO Records). 

Inspired by Hip-Hop soloists like Jay-Z, who were entirely self-made artists. Drake also aspired to be self-made. 

In “Comeback Season,” Drake released a hit single that landed a huge opportunity for the artist. The single’s music video premiered on BET. 

This marked the first time an unsigned Canadian rapper had accomplished such a fleet. 

With Drake’s name now quickly gaining relevance, it didn’t take long for other huge artists to want to meet the upcoming star. 

Meeting Lil Wayne

drake net worth

Soon enough, Lil Wayne reached out to Drake after hearing his single. 

Lil Wayne invited Drake to join his Tha Carter III tour, where the two wrote and recorded future hit singles like “Forever.” 

In 2009, Drake released his free mixtape “So Far Gone” on his OVO website. 

The mixtape achieves gold status relatively soon after gaining 2,000 downloads within its first hour. 

Thank Me Later

This put Drake in the middle of a huge bidding war between record labels, as now everyone wanted to sign him. Eventually, Drake signed with Lil Wayne’s Cash Money Records in 2009.

This started a golden age of success for Drake. The artist released his

debut album, “Thank Me Later,” on June 15, 2010. 

The album quickly gained the #1 spot on both the Canadian and American top billboards. 

Young Money Entertainment

drake net worth

Young Money Entertainment was co-founded by Lil Wayne and his longtime friend Mack Maine in 2005.

The label was originally an imprint of Cash Money Records but became its own entity in 2009. As of 2020, the company is worth an estimated $100 million.

Drake has been with the label since he signed with Lil Wayne in 2009 and has released four of his albums through Young Money.

The label is also currently home to artists such as Nicki Minaj, Tyga, and Mack Maine.

Take Care

Drake’s second studio album “Take Care” was released in November 2011 under Young Money and Cash Money Records.

The album was a huge success, selling 631,000 copies in the United States within its first week.

It went on to win two Grammy Awards and cement Drake as one of the world’s most popular rappers.

Other Discography

Drake’s music catalog features several other hit albums such as “Nothing Was the Same” (2013), “Views” (2016), and “Scorpion” (2018).

He’s sold millions of records worldwide and has cemented himself as one of the richest rappers in the music industry. Here are the albums he released following his success with “Take Care:

Nothing Was The Same

Drake’s third studio album “Nothing Was the Same” was released in September 2013. 

The album sold 2,172,000 copies in the United States during its first week and is currently 6x platinum certified by the RIAA.

Views

Drake’s fourth studio album “Views” was released in April 2016. The album became Drake’s first album to achieve number one on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States.

The album has since been certified 8x platinum by the RIAA.

Scorpion

Drake’s fifth studio album “Scorpion” was released in June 2018. 

The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, making it Drake’s seventh consecutive album to do so. 

The album is over 11x platinum certified by the RIAA.

Drake has also collaborated with artists like Kanye WestEminemRihannaJack Harlow, and many more. Every album he’s ever released since then has achieved 4-times platinum. 

OVO Sound

drake net worth

In 2012, Drake co-founded his own record label and management company OVO (October’s Very Own) Sound with Noah “40” Shebib.

Drake’s albums are distributed by Republic Records, which is owned by the Universal Music Group. The Warner Music Group owns Republic Records and Warner Records distributes Drake’s albums.

The label is home to artists such as PARTYNEXTDOOR, Majid Jordan, Plaza, and Roy Woods.

Drake’s a majority shareholder of the Canadian radio station Beats 1, which is a part of Apple Music.

Drake’s Net Worth After Business Ventures

Outside of his music career, Drake has taken on several notable streams of revenue. 

When Apple Music was first released to the public, Drake signed an astounding $19 million deal with the platform. 

This would allow the streaming service to be the home for all future Drake solo and album debuts. 

Endorsements

Many endorsement deals have found themselves at Drake’s doorstep. 

He has amassed a significantly large net worth by signing deals with companies including Sprite, Burger King, Nike, and Apple. 

Virginia Black Whiskey

drake net worth

In 2016, the Canadian superstar launched his very own line of bourbon whiskey. The company took on the name “Virginia Black.” Virginia Black sold 4,000 bottles on the first week of release.

They later shipped out 30,000 more bottles as the year progressed. Drake also grew his net worth massively through world tour shows. 

World Tours

His most successful tour to date was the “Summer Sixteen” tour that reeled in $80 million across 53 different shows. All in all, Drake has embarked on five world tours thus far. 

Awards and Nominations

Throughout his career, Drake has earned quite a few awards and nominations.

The rapper has won four Grammy Awards, six American Music Awards, three Juno Awards, five Billboard Music Awards and many more.

His accolades have even stretched beyond the United States and Canada. He’s received two awards out of six nominations for the Brit Awards, The British equivalent to the American Grammy Awards.

He’s also been nominated for a whopping 86 different awards, out of which he’s won 39.

Drake Net Worth 2023

As of May 2023, Drake’s net worth is $250 million. 

From 2010 to 2020, Drake amassed nearly $433 million in annual earnings combined. 

Drake grosses an impressive $47 million per year from music streaming services. 

Personal Life

Drake’s former fling, Sophie Brusseaux, is a French artist and former adult film actress.

The two welcomed their child, Adonis, in October 2017. Drake has never married but seems to be content with raising his son as a single father. 

Outside of his family life, he is an avid sports fan and is often seen attending Toronto Maple Leafs and Raptors games.

Drake is also the global ambassador for the Raptors, a team he’s shown great passion and love for in the past. On an annual basis, the artist even holds a “Drake night” with the team. 

How Does Drake Spend His Money?

The rapper owns several cars, including a Bentley Bentayga, Ferrari 458, Porsche 911 Carrera, and Rolls-Royce Wraith. 

Drake has also been known to drop some serious cash on jewelry. In 2019, he spent $100,000 on a diamond bracelet for himself.

Not only that, but he purchased a private jet, which he dubbed “Air Drake.” The plane set him back a whopping $185 million.

Real Estate

The superstar holds a lot of his wealth through real estate. 

He initially eyed his dream estate in Hidden Hills but waited until the owner listed the property for a discount of $7 million following the real estate crisis of 2009 (originally $27 million). 

Drake extended this property by buying the neighboring estate for another $1.6 million. 

Drake now owns a Toronto mansion called The Embassy, which is worth a whopping $150 million dollars. The house is lined with limestone, bronze, and exotic woods. 

The mansion also has crazy amenities like an NBA regulation-size indoor basketball court and a 21-square-foot pyramidal skylight.

With his finances In such great shape, Drake has become a huge sports fan, and has made big-time bets on the NBA Playoffs, UFC Pay Per Views, and the NFL Draft. 

Drake recently won $1 million after the Golden State Warriors won the Western Conference. 

In April of 2022, Drake bet $200,000 on the Warriors to move past the first three rounds of the NBA Playoffs and make it to the NBA finals.

Relationship with Nicki Minaj

From 2014 to 2018, Minaj and Drake had an on-again, off-again relationship that was highly publicized by the media. 

The two artists have collaborated on several songs like “Only,” “Truffle Butter,” “Anaconda,” and more. 

In October 2020, it was revealed that the two had finally ended their relationship for good.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Who’s richer, Lil Wayne or Drake?

Drake is richer than Lil Wayne. Lil Wayne’s net worth is $150 million, while Drake’s is estimated at $250 million.

Key Takeaways

Now that you know what the net worth of Drake is and how he built it, let’s take a look at some of the most important lessons we can learn from his journey.

Use Pain as Motivation

Growing up, Drake experienced many hardships that may also be facing us in our day-to-day lives. 

Similar to Drake, we have to use these moments of struggle s motivation and as a basis for wanting more in life. 

What doesn’t destroy us can only make us stronger. Use your pain as motivation to get what you want in life.

Always Strive to be the Owner

Drake understood the value of his skills and the value of ownership. From the very beginning, he always had his eyes set on entrepreneurship and creating the brand he ultimately wished to represent. 

Never Stop Building

Even at the top of the rap game, Drake never rested for a second. Whether it be new real estate investments, new studio albums, or new brand endorsement deals.

Drake continuously sought ways to grow his net worth. We also need to be this hungry and dedicated to striving for our own stars and dreams.