Diddy Will Be First Billionaire Rapper, Says Forbes

props 2 hiphopdx for the info !!!

Earlier in the month, Forbes broke down the five wealthiest Hip Hop moguls, saying that the genre's top earners - Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Birdman, Dr. Dre and Diddy. Now, in a recent blog, Forbes's Zack O'Malley Greenburg explained why Diddy, who's worth a whopping $475 million, may be the first of the genre to make a billion dollars.

According to Greenburg, Diddy's extensive branding with his Bad Boy imprint and clothing lines like Sean John and Enyce have already netted him hundreds of millions of dollars. Experts indicate, however, that Diddy's involement with Ciroc vodka will prove to be essential to him reaching the billion dollar mark. Although Ciroc isn't selling as much as its sister brand Ketel One, Diddy's work with the budding vodka label may earn him nine figures in the future.

"The product is important," says one equity analyst from Edward Jones & Co Jack Russo. “But the name on the product is about ten times as important...Ciroc is a very popular brand, and it’s been growing. It has that cache. It’s in the right spot in the right sector.”

At the same time, Diddy's public image has proven integral to his immense success. His ability to reinvent himself as a mogul, a musician and an actorhas helped him create a multi-medium brand that consumers easily recognize.

"He makes his lifestyle coexist with everything else he’s doing,” said Hip Hop pioneer Fab 5 Freddy. "The broad scope of his career and how he’s been able to stay relevant is one of the great examples of personal brand-building."