Major key alert!!!
What do P. Diddy, Usher, Jay-Z, DJ Khaled, and Nipsey Hussle have in common? If you said that they all make music you are correct! However, there is more to them than just making music. All of these very wealthy men started from the bottom. Music has allowed them to make more money than they even knew what to do with. But they will tell you, that it is a blessing as much as it is a curse. As the honorable Notorious B.I.G. said,
Mo Money Mo Problems
Jay-Z turned himself into a mogul billionaire by investing wisely from the very beginning of his music career. It is only fitting that Jay would then rap about his wealth creation formulas in his music. In the song, “The Story of OJ” Jay gave us some of his best financial tips. It’s safe to say Jay is taking the mentoring approach to fellow rappers by rapping about controversial topics as well as speaking on savings, investing, and personal vulnerabilities through his music.
It makes some people uncomfortable to talk about money and investments but the dialogue is necessary for a community that is fighting to make gains every day.
I told him, “Please don’t die over the neighborhood. That your momma rentin’
Take your drug money and buy the neighborhood. That’s how you rinse it”
Black people, as a collective, don’t own enough real estate but more importantly they don’t own enough businesses in their communities. They don’t own the corner stores, the laundromats, the local restaurants, or bars, yet they consume the most in their neighborhoods. It may be difficult at first—saving, finding viable properties, etc.—but it is possible for black people to reinvest in their neighborhoods. It simply requires deliberate action. This information goes out to all races and nationalities. Also, if you still haven’t heard the song, click here.
According to Forbes, Jay’s net worth today comes from his Champagne brand Armand de Brignac (worth an estimated $310 million), cognac brand D’Ussé ($100 million), music streaming service Tidal ($100 million), sports and entertainment management agency Roc Nation ($75 million), ownership of the master recordings of some of his biggest hits, numerous investments, (including a large stake in Uber), and of course, an impressive collection of homes and valuable art to decorate them with.
2017 was a big real-estate year for the power couple, Jay and Beyonce. They dropped $26 million on a seven bedroom, seven-and-a-half-bathroom East Hampton mansion with a pond, a meadow preserve, and an 1,800-square-foot guesthouse on the New York property. They also picked up a palatial Bel Air spread for $88 million that year in California. Those pricey purchases are on top of their other reported holdings, a $2.6-million New Orleans mansion and a $6.5-million New York City penthouse.
Nipsey Hussle made it clear that his objective was to lift up his community. Hussle was deeply concerned with South LA communities, and in both Crenshaw and Hyde Park made investments and philanthropic contributions that spoke to the diverse needs of residents — he not only had affordable housing plans in the works, but was coupling that development with affordable, healthy food access. He made sure basketball courts were paved for children to play, and then through Vector 90 — a technology co-working center and incubator also offering STEM education — made sure those youth would be able to find jobs and thrive in their local community.
It’s not just about what you can buy, but what you can build.
Hussle also recognized that ownership was a critical component of setting the structural stage for communities to thrive. As L.A. City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson noted to the LA Times, “He was investing in this part of town because he understood … if we ever wanted it to be in the condition it deserved, and for our people to be treated the way they deserved to be treated, we have to own it. There was no shortcuts to that.”
My key take aways from this article are to:
- Invest in your ecosystems.
- Start with what you know and grow from there.
- Build a legacy.
Investing shouldn’t just be about making as much money as possible, it should prioritize being able to hold your head high in your community — knowing that you were able to create wealth for others, while also supporting your own family and needs.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. If you would like to contribute to this, please comment below. Also, let me know what you think about these entrepreneurs and if you would take their approach to wealth creation. If there is someone you would like me to talk about next, please leave it in the comments below.
Keep going,
Kendell Angeles
