Britney Spears Edges Out Taylor Swift As Top-Earning Female Musician Of 2012

Carl Williott | December 12, 2012 9:07 am

Britney Spears was the most profitable female musician of the year, according to Forbes. Thanks to the success of her latest album Femme Fatale, the tour and her fragrance, the 31-year-old pop star raked in $58 million in 2012. Taylor Swift came in second on the list, just a million bucks short of Spears’ number. Just how close is $1M? Taylor was reportedly making that each night of her tour, meaning if she had just scrounged together a couple more shows (so lazy, right!?) the Red star would’ve been the most successful woman in music this year.

But there’s always next year: the numbers come from earnings between May 2011 and May 2012, so Swift’s mammoth returns don’t even include her record-breaking Red sales. The top 5 is rounded out with Rihanna ($53M), Lady Gaga ($52M) and Katy Perry ($45). Read on for the full list.

One other interesting bit of trivia: only eight of the women here made enough to crack the list of 25 highest-paid musicians of 2012. (Easy solution: Beats by Fiona)

Forbes‘ 10 Top-Earning Women In Music 2012:

1. Britney Spears ($58 million)
2. Taylor Swift ($57 million)
3. Rihanna ($53 million)
4. Lady Gaga ($52 million)
5. Katy Perry ($45 million)
6. Beyonce ($40 million)
7. Adele ($35 million)
8. Sade ($33 million)
9. Madonna ($30 million)
10. Shakira ($20 million)