Her wine label, endorsement deals, and acting gigs are beyond lucrative.
The Super Bowl LVI is happening this Sunday. And, naturally, people are all about the Halftime show. One person who’s definitely performing? Mary J. Blige.
It’s very much a “been there, done that” moment for Mary, who performed with Steve Tyler at the Halftime show in 2001. Clearly, her impressive career has something to do with the fact that she’s performing a second time around after more than two decades.
And while the Halftime show famously doesn’t pay the A-listers who perform, Mary gets paid well for her time in everything else that she does. So, what’s her net worth? Here’s what you need to know about how she made her money.
Her music career took off in 1992.
Yep, three decades ago, Mary launched her debut album, What’s the 411? after dropping out of school to pursue a career in music. She didn’t exactly make peanuts from the R&B and soul album: She made $3.6 million from it, according to The Richest. Since then, Mary has cranked out 14 studio albums—and eight that have gone multiplatinum, according to her website. Her albums My Life and No More Drama earned her a combined $10.2 million. And her 2010 tour yielded more than $2.7 million. All told, she earned more than $45 million before taxes via her music alone.
She’s won a bunch of awards.
Like, a ton. Mary has netted nine Grammy Awards, 12 Billboard Music Awards (including the Icon Award in 2017), and four American Music Awards, so she’s doing OK in the awards department. Obviously, you don’t get paid when you win, but they definitely lend some extra prestige to your name that can be translated into album sales and future gigs.
But Mary’s also been busy acting.
Mary has appeared on a slew of hit shows, including Ghost Whisperer, Empire, Black-ish, and The Umbrella Academy, according to IMDB. And according to Express, Mary earns approximately $400,000 per episode for Power Book II. Mary has been in plenty of movies, too, including the 2012 onscreen adaptation of Rock of Ages alongside Julianne Hough and Tom Cruise. Mary also starred in the period drama film Mudbound in 2017, and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.
She’s had plenty of endorsement deals, too.
Being a big name comes with plenty of marketing clout—and Mary’s cashed in. She’s had deals with Reebok, Air Jordan, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Gap, Target, American Express, AT&T, M·A·C, Apple, Burger King, and Chevrolet, according to Cheat Sheet.
Mary J. Blige performed with Steven Tyler during the Halftime show at Super Bowl XXXV in 2001.Mary has her own wine label.
In 2020, Mary launched her own wine label, called Sun Goddess Wines. It features a pinot grigio, a sauvignon blanc, and a merlot, according to the official website.
She won’t be making any money from the Halftime show.
Celebs who perform at the Halftime show do not get paid for their efforts. In fact, many of them shell out their own money to produce shows to their exacting standard. (Last year, The Weeknd added $7 million to the production budget of his Halftime show, per Forbes.) However, performing at the Super Bowl almost always leads to more lucrative deals and music purchases afterward—thanks to the exposure it provides.
So, what’s Mary J. Blige’s net worth?
Mary is worth an estimated $20 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.