Dr. Dre, Diddy & Jay-Z Top Forbes Cash Kings 2012 List (Shout Out Mac Miller & Tech N9ne)

by STEVEN J. HOROWITZ

UPDATE: Tech N9ne and Timbaland tied with Akon for #20.

Dr. Dre, Diddy and Jay-Z have been announced as the top three artists on Forbes' Cash Kings 2012 list.

Dre holds the top spot on this year's list with $110 million in pretax earnings thanks to the lucrative sale of his Beats By Dr. Dre headphones to handset maker HTC, which paid $300 million for a 51 percent stake in the company last year.

Diddy scores second place with $45 million in earnings due to profits from Diageo's Ciroc vodka, while Jay-Z ranks at number three with $38 million thanks to investments in Carol's Daughter and the Brooklyn Nets.

Kanye West places at number four with $35 million, while Lil Wayne lodges at number five with $27 million. Drake and Nicki Minaj place at number six and eight with $20.5 million and $15.5 million, respectively.

Check out the full list below (via HHNM).

1. Dr. Dre: $110 million
2. Diddy: $45 million
3. Jay-Z: $38 million
4. Kanye West: $35 milliom
5. Lil Wayne: $27 million
6 Drake: $20.5 milliom
7. Birdman: $20 million
8. Nicki Mianj: $15.5 million
9. Eminem: $15 millionv10. Ludacris: $12 million
11. Pitbull: $9.5 million
12. Rick Ross: $9 million (tie)
13. Wiz Khalifa: $9 million (tie)
14. Snoop Dogg: $8 million
15. 50 Cent: $7.5 million
16. Swizz Beatz: $7 million (tie)
17. Pharrell: $7 million (tie)
18. Young Jeezy: $7 million (tie)
19. Mac Miller: $6.5 million (tie)
20. Akon, Timbaland & Tech N9ne (tie): $6 million (tie)