The best friendships are made of trust, respect – and in Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez’s case, more than $1.9 billion between them.
The longtime pals – who first crossed paths 16 years ago, when they were both romantically linked to the Jonas Brothers – have both made huge fortunes in their illustrious careers.
Just this month Taylor, 34, officially reached billionaire status, 17 years into her incredible journey to becoming music’s biggest superstar.
On Tuesday, Forbes released their 2024 billionaire list and the singer climbed to fourteenth place.
The lyrical wonder, 34, who is the most famous newcomer on the list, amassed an estimated $1.1 billion fortune, based on earnings from her blockbuster Eras tour, the value of her music catalog and her real estate portfolio.
The best friendships are made of trust, respect – and in Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez ‘s case, more than $1.9 billion between them. Both pictured with Katy Perry in 2011
This is on top of huge earnings from her first six albums, which she re-recorded as she negotiated with streaming platforms how her music is monetised.
The accomplishment is particularly monumental as she is among a small few who’ve achieved the milestone ‘through music and performing alone’.
Meanwhile Selena, 31, is estimated to have a net worth of $800 million, the majority of which, according to Parade.com, is thought to come from her successful make-up brand Rare Beauty.
The ex-Disney star set up the company only four years ago, and it has been hugely popular.
In October, Fast Company reported that Rare Beauty was expected to exceed $300 million in sales in 2023, according to industry insiders – ‘triple what it earned in 2022, when sales doubled from 2021’.
Meanwhile, recent rumours have also sparked speculation that Selena was going to sell the brand.
In January, Business of Fashion cited sourced who claimed Rare Beauty was ‘flirting’ with options but admitted the company hasn’t confirmed anything.
The outlet estimated a ‘$2 billion plus price tag’ – which could quickly thrust Selena into the billionaire club with bestie Taylor.
Just this month Taylor, 34, officially reached billionaire status, 17 years into her illustrious career as music’s biggest superstar
Meanwhile Selena, 31, is estimated to have a net worth of $800 million, the majority of which, according to Parade.com , is thought to come from her successful make-up brand Rare Beauty
Selena also stars, as well as produces, in hit TV show Only Murders in the Building. According to Variety, her co-stars Martin Short and Steve Martin both got $600,000 per episode.
As reported by Cosmopolitan, the wealthy star also has her own production company July Moon Productions – which was behind the highly successful 13 Reasons Why – and is also well known for her music.
The outlet added that her debut solo album saw her net worth break $10 million in April 2013, and that her touring has also racked in plenty of cash; Stars Dance Tonight is thought to have made $35.3 million while Revival brought in an estimated $35.6 million.
With 429 million followers on Instagram, it’s also no wonder that brands are jumping at the chance to collaborate with the actress – who has featured in campaigns for Coach – who she had signed a $10 million deal with – and Puma, who according to E! News paid her $30 million for a two year deal.
She is in at number three on the 2023 Instagram Rich List (after Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi), and thought to earn a whopping $2,557,825 per post, Hopper reports.
And that’s not to dismiss the cushy fortune the star would have started earning at a young age, with appearances on Wizards of Waverly Place, the Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Hannah Montana.
Taylor and Selena have been longtime friends since they met through the Jonas Brothers. Both pictured in January
Taylor and Selena have been longtime friends since they met through the Jonas Brothers 16 years ago.
Back in 2008, the pair kicked off their longstanding friendship when Taylor was dating Joe and Selena was thought to be dating Nick.
A month later after their double date, Taylor attended the premiere of Selena’s film, Another Cinderella Story, to show her support.
Since then, the duo have attended many red carpets, many award shows, and celebrated a number of birthdays together.
Selena has also made surprise appearances at Taylor’s concert tours including Speak Now and Reputation.
In August, Selena attended Taylor’s concert in Los Angeles as well as Arlington, Texas amid her ongoing, career-spanning Eras Tour with her younger sister, Gracie.
Selena even accidentally started a temporary feud with her friend Francia Raisa after she called Taylor her ‘only friend in the industry’ during an interview with Rolling Stone.
Singers Taylor and Joe pictured together at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards at Paramount Pictures Studios
Back in 2008, the pair kicked off their longstanding friendship when Taylor was dating Joe and Selena was dating Nick. Selena pictured in 2008
Back in 2008, the pair kicked off their longstanding friendship when Taylor was dating Joe and Selena was dating Nick. Selena and Nick pictured in 2015
Francia, who donated a kidney to Selena, was apparently upset with Selena, though the Wizards Of Waverly Place star later clarified that she was referring to the music industry, which didn’t mean that Francia couldn’t still be a good friend in the film and television industry.
In November, Selena also joined Swift Taylor a girls’ night in New York City with Sophie Turner, Gigi Hadid, Cara Delevingne and Brittany Mahomes.
And for Taylor’s birthday on December 13, Selena shared a heartfelt birthday tribute to her pal, in which she called the performer a ‘goddess.’
Elsewhere in January, Taylor and Selena made headlines after they were seemingly caught gossiping at the Golden Globes.
Taylor’s Eras Tour is the first tour to cross the $1 billion mark, according to Pollstar’s 2023 year-end charts.
Since then, the duo have attended many red carpets, many award shows, and celebrated a number of birthdays together. Pictured in 2015
Selena and Taylor have maintained their strong friendship over the years, while building up their incredible careers
Not only was her landmark Eras Tour the number one tour both worldwide and in North America, but she also brought in a whopping $1.04 billion (£831.6 million) with 4.35 million tickets sold across 60 tour dates, the concert trade publication found.
Pollstar data is pulled from box office reports, venue capacity estimates, historical Pollstar venue ticket sales data and other undefined research, collected from November 17, 2022 to November 15, 2023.
Representatives for the publication did not immediately clarify if they adjusted past tour data to match 2023 inflation in naming Taylor the first to break the billion-dollar threshold.
Her tour kicked off in March in Arizona.
Pollstar also found that Taylor brought in approximately $200 million (£159.8 million) in merch sales.
And her blockbuster film adaptation of the tour, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, has reportedly earned approximately $250 million (£199 million) in sales.
And that’s not to dismiss the cushy fortune the star would have started earning at a young age, with appearances on Wizards of Waverly Place (pictured), the Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Hannah Montana
Selena also stars, as well as produces, in hit TV show Only Murders in the Building. According to Variety , her co-stars Martin Short and Steve Martin both got $600,000 per episode
The ex-Disney star set up the company only four years ago, and it has been hugely popular. Pictured in January
That makes it the highest-grossing concert film of all time.
According to their estimates, Pollstar predicts a big 2024 for Swift as well.
The magazine projects the Eras Tour will once again reach $1 billion (£799 million) within their eligibility window.
That means Taylor is likely to bring in more than $2 billion (£1.5 billion) over the span of the tour.
Worldwide, Taylor’s tour was followed by Beyoncé in second, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band in third, Coldplay in fourth, Harry Styles in fifth, followed by Morgan Wallen, Ed Sheeran, Pink, The Weeknd and Drake.
Pictured: Taylor and Kanye ‘Ye’ West in 2009, during the infamous moment which saw the rapper jump on stage with her
Pictured: Taylor performing during the ‘Read Now with Taylor Swift’ event for New York City school students in 2010
The magazine projects the Eras Tour will once again reach $1 billion (£799 million) within their eligibility window
Taylor’s Eras Tour is the first tour to cross the $1 billion mark, according to Pollstar’s 2023 year-end charts. Pictured in Melbourne in February
In North America, there was a similar top 10: Taylor, followed by Beyonce, Morgan Wallen, Drake, P!nk, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Ed Sheeran, George Strait, Karol G and RBD.
Beyond Taylor, 2023 was a landmark year for concert sales: worldwide, the top 100 tours of the year saw a 46% jump from last year, bringing in $9.17 billion (£7.31 billion) compared with 2022’s $6.28 billion (£5.06 billion).
Taylor was also recently named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year.
Apple Music had also named her its artist of the year; Spotify revealed she was 2023’s most-streamed artist globally, raking in more than 26.1 billion streams since January 1 and beating Bad Bunny’s three-year record.