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Skrillex Infiltrates ‘Celebrity 100’ List of Rich and Famous

Skrillex / Photo by Harper Smith

Every year, Forbes puts out a series of lists designed to grab our attention — richest rappers! most powerful women in show biz! — based on metrics that are a little hard to understand. Their annual Celebrity 100, for instance, which was born in 1999, ranks notable public figures based on “money and fame.” The money part is determined via earnings collected between May 1, 2011 and May 1, 2012, and the fame component consists of a combination of “media visibility” and “social media power.” Last year’s 100 winner was Lady Gaga, who probably could have taken the race on meat dress visibility alone. This year, however, Gaga has slipped to No. 5 and American Idol judge and perennial tabloid star Jennifer Lopez (who also sometimes makes music) is tops. This year, Bono doesn’t even make the cut; next year he seems poised to obliterate this thing.

What did we learn from this year’s list? Twenty-three of the 100 figures come from the music world. Most of those people are women pop stars, like those who dominate the Top 10 (Lopez, Rihanna, Gaga, Britney, Katy Perry) and Justin Bieber (duh). Hip-hop stars are evidently less powerful than pop stars (Dr. Dre is the earliest entrant, at No. 26, and Jay-Z follows at 38). Beyoncé has again been deemed more powerful than her super-powerful husband (she clocks in at 16). Adele did get rich and powerful from saving the record industry. And electronic music hasn’t just infiltrated the Top 40, the Grammy Awards, every commercial on TV, and your uncle’s Memorial Day playlist: Tiesto is on the list at 84, and SPIN cover star Skrillex sneaks in at 92.

So, congratulations go Skrillex, the only member of our 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time list to cross over to the Forbes countdown! Full list of music figures who made the cut here. A word to the wise here, as Lauryn Hill sang: “You can get the money / you can get the power / but keep your eyes on the final hour.”

1. Jennifer Lopez
3. Justin Bieber
4. Rihanna
5. Lady Gaga
6. Britney Spears
8. Katy Perry
11. Taylor Swift
16. Beyoncé Knowles
17. Elton John
18. Simon Cowell
21. Paul McCartney
24. Adele
25. Bon Jovi
26. Dr. Dre
38. Jay-Z
42. Sean Combs
45. Kanye West
49. Toby Keith
53. Kenny Chesney
68. Brad Paisley
69. Lil Wayne
84. Tiesto
92. Skrillex