The huge sum, most of which was from her world tour, propelled Beyoncé, 33, from fourth place last year and put her firmly ahead of pop star Taylor Swift, 24, who came in 2nd with $64 million. Pop singer Pink, 35, climbed up from No. 8 in 2013 to third with $52 million.
'Beyonce played 95 shows during our scoring period, bringing in an average of $2.4 million per city,'
said Forbes, citing data from the Pollstar trade magazine. The R&B singer's self-titled album released last December and endorsement deals pushed her earnings up further assuring her the top spot.
Barbados-born Rihanna, 26, came in 4th with $48 million and Katy Perry, 30, who earned an estimated $40 million, ranked 5th. Madonna, 56, who ranked No. 1 last year, failed to make the top 10 in 2014. Lady Gaga, 28, slumped from No. 2 in 2013 to ninth place this year with estimated earnings of $33 million.
Forbes compiled the list after estimating pre-tax income calculated for the 12 months from June 2013 to 2014 based on record sales, concert tickets, touring information merchandise sales and interviews with concert promoters, lawyers and managers. It also looked at data from the Pollstar, the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and tracking firm Nielsen SoundScan.
In 2009, Beyonce told Forbes of her work ethic:
'Like everyone else, you work really hard and you want it to be great; you want your friends to like it, What makes me feel comfortable is practice and knowing I'm prepared.
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