Forbes

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Kanye’s cash, plus rumbles about Bumble’s billionair­e owner.

Three years ago, Kanye West claimed to be $53 million in debt. Now our August 31 cover star tells Forbes he has “gold pharaoh wolverine blood” coursing through his veins. This condition is due to West’s wildly popular Yeezy shoe line, which is expected to top $1.5 billion in revenue in 2019. Kanye himself landed at No. 3 on our annual Celebrity 100 list, having made roughly $150 million last year—both from his music and from the 15% wholesale royalty he collects on his sneakers (plus a marketing fee), thanks to a lucrative contract with Adidas. CNBC commentato­r, author and investor Josh Brown wondered whether West’s kicks would finally outsell Michael Jordan’s this year, tweeting, “Ye finally got his money right.” Posting the Forbes cover to Instagram, West’s wife, Kim Kardashian, observed that “It’s of no surprise to anyone who works with or is close to Kanye that he has been able to turn millions of dollars in debt into a billion-dollar empire in only four years—100% on his own terms, while owning 100% of his business.”

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