Willie Nelson
Net Worth: $25 million
Venture: Willie’s Reserve
You may recognize Willie Nelson from various films and TV shows. Despite looking like your favorite uncle during the time he rebelled against your aunt and to prove his independence, Nelson has built a substantial following of fans and a net worth of around $25 million. He is actively involved in poetry and activism, mostly focusing on the topic of legalizing the use of Cannabis.
Nelson has also been around for a long time now, and originally signed his first label deal in 1973 with Atlantic Records after growing his fame through folk music. The singer has since changed his tune and focused more on outlaw country music rather than classic American folk, with his most famous album is “Wanted! The Outlaws”. Nelson currently spends his time and wealth on his business which sells marijuana-related products, as-well-as various activism efforts for legalization.
Blanco Brown
Net Worth: $500,000
Venture: The Git Up
One of our most exciting up-and-comers in this list is Blanco Brown. Representing both the African-American culture and old-school folk American tradition, the singer has managed to combine the two most unlikely genres of rap and country into some of the most engaging and unifying forms of music that we’ve heard in the last few years. If there’s one genre that’s typically associated with more “dirty” themes it would definitely be rap and hip-hop. Brown brilliantly manages to take the best rap and hip-hop have to offer and distill them into an extremely positive country musical experience.
This young artist from Atlanta appears to be doing exactly the right moves since his works have led him to sell over twenty million records in his very short career so far. If you’re interested in listening to Brown’s music and experiencing some of the best combination of genres that music has to offer, look no further than his hit single The Git Up for some great ear pleasure. The song racked over 50 million views on YouTube and is honestly one of the most interesting pieces of music we’ve heard in a while.
Jana Kramer
Net Worth: $2 million
Venture: Dancing with the Stars
While you may know Jana Kramer as one of the stars from the ABC’s American dance competition, Dancing with the Stars, or as a young and successful country singer, she’s the first country artist on our list that started out in entertainment as an actress and only then moved on to singing. While many actors dabble in music and singing, Kramer decided to fully embrace the country path and debuted her musical career in 2012.
So far, the young actress and singer has released two studio albums for her label called “Jana Kramer,” and “Thirty One.” Both albums received very favorable sales and reviews, and have both reached high spots in the charts, with seven singles also reaching the charts. Her two best performing songs to date are “I Got the Boy” and “Why Ya Wanna.” She’s most recognizable as an actress for her role as Alex Dupre in the One Tree Hill TV show and also acted in the low-budget indie horror film, Dead/Undead.
Lee Ann Womack
Net Worth: $20 million
Venture: CMT Crossroads
When Lee Ann Womack first appeared in the country scene, she was instantly recognized as a modern mix of Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette. The country singer managed to bring fans back to the older days of female country songs with her musical style being deeply rooted in traditional country. When Ann Womack debuted in 1997, she instantly received fame and acclaim for her music. She is best known for the title song “I Hope You Dance” from her debut album, and has managed to achieve quite a lot with a relatively small discography.
When Ann Womack released, There’s More Where That Came From, her second album, she was quick to find out that the name was exactly the right fit because it performed just as-well or even better than the first. The traditional country singer took a break in 2008 and only returned to the music scene six years later with the album “The Way I’m Livin”, which sold over six million copies in the US. Ann Womack has definitely built a very impressive career with a relatively low amount of work, compared to other country singers, and currently boasts a net worth around $20 million.
Kip Moore
Net Worth: $4 million
Venture: Slowheart
Many fans of the hip Kip Moore don’t know that the singer never really set out to develop a musical career, and to some extent, stumbled into it. When he was younger, Moore would travel as a backpacking nomad and spend most of his time after college surfing in Hawaii while living in his tiny Hut. In 2004, after what we imagine were some really great days of tanning and working on his beach bod, Moore decided to try his luck at singing and moved to Nashville, where he met the successful producer Brett James, who helped him get a label deal with MCA Nashville.
The surfing singer made his debut in 2012 and his luck just kept going. Moore would go on to receive critical and commercial acclaim for his first album, “Up All Night,” which was the best selling first album of any male country star for both 2012 and 2013, and achieved platinum status by the RIAA shortly after its release. Since then, Moore has released two more albums, “Wild Ones” and “Slowheart”, which both received good amounts of sales and attention, but failed to live up to the levels of success the first album generated. His best singles are, “Young Love,” “Dirt Road,” and “I’m to Blame.”