The highest-earning songwriters of all time

Songwriters don’t get as much credit from the general public as they should. Most of the hits that we hear are the product of one or several songwriters behind the scenes, crafting that perfectly bouncy, catchy, and singable chorus that makes you hop out of bed on a Sunday morning and dance your way to the shower. What we also don’t think of often is where the money goes. A lot of the earnings from hit songs will go to the record label and management, and after that the profits are split between the artist, songwriters, and whomever else. The difference is that a songwriter can benefit from leveraging the popularity of many different artists at once. For example, a songwriter can be reaping the financial benefits of several pop stars in the charts.

With this in mind, it's time to look at the highest-earning songwriters of all time. To learn who they are, click through this gallery.

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Mick Jagger -

Of course, Mick Jagger gets on the list, and not just because he’s got the moves. Jagger has written much of the lyrics for the Rolling Stones’ songs, sometimes solo, other times in collaboration with Keith Richards.

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Mick Jagger -

In the case of the Stones, they split their royalties. Jagger has also written many other songs like ‘Old Habits Die Hard,’ from the 2004 movie 'Alfie,' which won a Golden Globe.

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Dolly Parton -

It’s no surprise that Dolly Parton would make this list. She pretty much wrote all of her own songs.

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Dolly Parton -

Consider how many times ‘I Will Always Love You’ by Whitney Houston has been played on radio and streamed. Well, it was written by Dolly Parton.

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Mariah Carey -

All we want for Christmas is the royalties from Mariah Carey’s Christmas hits! Carey rakes in millions every year from these sing-along anthems every season.

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Mariah Carey -

Did you know that Mariah also wrote hits like 'Hero'? Actually, she's written well over 150 songs!

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Jay-Z -

Jay-Z hasn’t just written songs for hip-hop stars—he’s also written songs for pop singers like wife Beyoncé (‘Crazy in Love’ and ‘Déjà Vu’) and Mariah Carey.

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Jay-Z -

‘Still Dre’ by Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre was written by Jay-Z. He rapped and wrote the lyrics for the song, mimicking both of them in the demos.

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Paul McCartney -

Paul McCartney wrote songs from the Beatles with John Lennon. He was also the songwriter for Wings.

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Paul McCartney -

In more recent years, Paul McCartney has also been teaming up with modern artists and writing songs for them. An example of how he’s moved with the times is his song ‘FourFiveSeconds’ with Rihanna and Kanye West.

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George Harrison -

George Harrison is credited as one of the wealthiest songwriters of all time. Harrison was credited as a songwriter on many of the Beatles’ albums, and we know the financial success those have been!

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George Harrison -

George Harrison was credited for songwriting on other people’s albums, too. For example, John Lennon wasn’t part of Paul McCartney’s solo albums and vice-versa, but George Harrison was involved in both.

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Diddy - Diddy has been around for a long time. He was around when rappers like The Notorious B.I.G. were coming up and lining his pockets with their earnings as a producer and record label executive.

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Diddy -

He’s written songs from all kinds of superstar artists throughout the years, like ‘Summertime’ for Beyoncé.

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Sting -

Sting made a huge success of himself as a solo artist. He has an incredible amount of songwriting credits on other people’s tracks, and also has royalties from the Police.

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Sting -

Sting has also written or co-written collaborative songs with artists like Eric Clapton, Shaggy, Mary J. Blige, and Alison Krauss.

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Bono -

Bono isn’t just the front man for prolific Irish rock band U2, he’s also their songwriter. He makes a lot of money selling his songs and has written tunes for all kinds of artists.

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Bono -

In a seemingly unlikely collaboration, rock singer Bono and rap star Kendrick Lamar appeared together on Lamar's track ‘XXX' off of his damn album 'DAMN.' Here Bono and The Edge are seen performing the song with the artist.

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Pete Townshend -

Pete Townshend was part of the popular rock band The Who, and was in fact the group's main songwriter.

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Pete Townshend -

He's also written songs for his solo career, and for The Who's Roger Daltrey, so he clearly keeps his talents to a small circle.

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Jimmy Buffett -

Jimmy Buffett is known for his summertime smash hits. The American singer-songwriter’s songs like ‘Margaritaville’ get played a lot, and he sweeps up the profits.

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Jimmy Buffett -

Jimmy Buffett has collaborated with the likes of James Taylor and Tom Corcoran.

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Michael Jackson -

Did you know MJ wrote or co-wrote hits 'Billie Jean,' 'Beat It,' and 'We Are the World'?

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Michael Jackson -

He also contributed to The Jacksons' music, and famously collaborated with Paul McCartney.

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Andrew Lloyd Webber -

Andrew Lloyd Webber (left) had to make this list, along with his old famed writing partner Tim Rice (right).

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Andrew Lloyd Webber -

Andrew Lloyd Webber is by far the most successful songwriter ever, with a net worth of US$1.2 billion! 'Phantom of the Opera,' 'Jesus Christ Superstar,' and 'Cats' are just some of the musicals he's contributed to.

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Tim Rice -

Tim Rice (right) hasn't done too poorly for himself either—he's worth US$200 million!

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Tim Rice -

Tim Rice successfully transitioned into movies, and has especially done well for himself with Disney films like 'Beauty and the Beast' (1991), 'Aladdin' (1992), and 'The Lion King' (1994).

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Herb Alpert -

Herb Alpert's band Tijuana Brass was famous in the 1960s, when he also set up A&M records.

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Herb Alpert -

Alpert also wrote with Sam Cooke, as well as lesser-known artists. The music veteran just released an album in 2021.

Sources: (Worthly)

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