- Kendrick Lamar is an American rapper
- He is the latest celebrity to play the Superbowl Halftime Show
- Lamar’s latest hit Not Like Us won 5 Grammy Awards
Kendrick Lamar has already had a major year, and we’re not even halfway through the year. Performing at the 2025 Superbowl Halftime Show, winning five Grammys for a diss song, and creating headlines! The performances and viral song, Not Like Us have certainly added to Lamar’s net worth this year, and his popularity. Not Like Us went viral when it was released in May 2024 as a diss track to rapper Drake.
Read More: The Best Reactions To Kendrick Lamar’s Superbowl Halftime Show
The clout from the song undoubtedly helped Lamar pick up his awards. The 2025 Grammys were shocking when the song picked up so many awards. Many fans were surprised at artists like Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande being snubbed, but on this occasion, Lamar lucked out.
However, Lamar has enjoyed success for years now, not just based on beef or a rap diss. 2015 was the main year that Lamar began to enjoy career success. He featured on Taylor Swift’s number one hit Bad Blood which was number one on the Billboard charts for weeks, as well as releasing one of his best albums To Pimp A Butterfly which features some bangers like Alright and King Kunta.
While we have delved a little into Lamar’s current success, we haven’t delved into his career. Also curious about Lamar’s net worth, overall career, and life? Keep on reading.
Early Life
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born on June 17, 1987, in Compton, . His father, Kenneth Duckworth was an infamous gang member. His mother, Paula Olivia was a hairdresser. The rapper grew up in Compton because his father was affiliated with the Gangster Disciples gang. He is the oldest of four children, he has two younger brothers and a sister.
Randomly, Lamar has two famous cousins, basketball player Nick Young who played for the Washington Wizards, and rapper Baby Keem. From a young age, his family was poor, although he enjoyed his childhood. Lamar’s interest in hip-hop came from sneaking into his parent’s house parties and then hearing himself on a recording. At that moment, he became interested in rap music.
At a young age, he witnessed the murder of a drug dealer on his street which showed him a new scary way of life. However, in school, he remained a great student and showed an interest in poetry, which he connected to rap. It is well documented he became involved with gang culture just by attending Centennial High School in Compton. Despite his challenges, Lamar graduated high school as a straight-A student. He did consider university but focused on his music career instead.
Lamar’s career
Of course, that decision to pursue rap instead of studying considerably added to Lamar’s net worth and music career.
Early career
As a young rapper, Lamar had the stage name K-Dot in high school. He would do freestyles and rap battles with other students which would draw in big crowds. Lamar became friends with future record producer Dave Free as a teen, and they made music in Free’s garage.
He recorded mixtapes in his early days, his first being Youngest Head N**** in Charge (Hub City Threat: Minor of the Year). Free sent the mixtape to record producer Anthony Tiffith, who invited Lamar to audition for him. Tiffith was founding an independent record label, and Lamar freestyle for him and a record executive. In his audition, he impressed them and was offered a contract by the record label, Top Dawg Entertainment, which he accepted.
Lamar bonded with Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q which formed the hip-hop group Black Hippy. His second mixtape, Training Day came out during this time in 2005. In 2006 Lamar signed an artist development deal with Def Jam Records, the same label that Rhianna was under. During this time, he was featured on a single by The Game and helped Jay Rock with his first two mixtapes.
Lamar was let go by Jay-Z who was affiliated with the label, but worked with Rock on the No Sleep ’til NYC mixtape. He continued to release music.
More music
After Def Jam, he released his third mixtape in 2009 C4, and that summer he toured with The Game on his tour along with Jay Rock. At this time, Lamar changed his stage name to his first and middle name to stand out more.
He released his fourth mixtape, Overly Dedicated in 2010 to better reception, and it even peaked at number 72 on the Billboard R&B and Hip-Hop chart. This mixtape reached hi-hop legend Dr Dre, and Dre wanted to sign Lamar to his label Aftermath Entertainment.
Debut album and beyond
Finally, in 2011 Lamar released his debut album, Section 80 with the lead single Hiii Power. He promoted the album by performing at college campuses and he got the approval from The Game, Dre, and Snoop Dogg as an artist.
His second and most revolutionary album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City was released in 2012 under Interscope Records and Aftermath Entertainment. One of his biggest songs, Swimming Pools (Drank) was the lead single and earned him his first Top 20 single. The other three singles Poetic Justice, Backseat Freestyle, and B****, Don’t Kill My Vibe were praised and had chart success.
Lamar had officially made it. His album debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 200 and sold over 200,000 copies in its first week.
In 2013 he had two headlining tours and continued to feature on prominent singles with A$AP Rocky and other artists. He even opened for Kanye West on his Yeezus tour that same year, and at this time he won Best New Artist at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards.
Also in that yeae, Lamar’s work on his music and others’ music earned him the title of Rapper Of The Year by GQ.
Mainstream success and now
From 2014 to now, Kendrick Lamar has solidified his status as one of hip-hop’s greatest artists. In 2015, he released To Pimp a Butterfly, a jazz-influenced, politically charged album that won Best Rap Album at the Grammys. He followed with DAMN in 2017, which earned him a Pulitzer Prize the following year, making history as the first rapper to receive the honor.
After curating Black Panther: The Album in 2018, he took a hiatus before returning with Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers in 2022, an introspective double album. Since then, he has headlined major festivals, engaged in a high-profile rap feud with Drake, and in 2025, delivered a widely acclaimed performance at the Super Bowl. The rapper has cemented himself as a cultural and rap icon, especially with his Superbowl stint.
What is Kendrick Lamar’s Net Worth?
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the rapper is worth a whopping $140 million! Headline tours and marketability have added considerably to Lamar’s net worth, but let’s break down his biggest earnings and assets.
Career Earnings
Sources say overall, the Not Like Us singer has earned $250 million in his career so far! In 2018, sources reported that he earned $60 million, although these aren’t all substantiated. Celebrity Net Worth also broke down Lamar’s alleged earnings from each year, showing he most recently earned $40 million in 2024.
Tours
Much of Lamar’s net worth comes from his successful tours and earnings from music. His most recent tour with the Bigger Steppers, The Bigger Steppers Tour earned $110.9 million across 73 shows.
Touring Data revealed this in a list of rapper tours in May 2024.
Top Tours by Rappers:
— Touring Data (@touringdata) May 15, 2024
Revenue; Artist; Tour; Shows
$215.9M; #Drake; It's All a Blur; 50/80
$110.9M; #KendrickLamar; The Big Steppers; 73
$105.0M; #50Cent; The Final Lap; 92/97
$103.1M; #Drake; Aubrey & the Three Migos; 54
$82.4M; #TravisScott; Circus Maximus; 38/61
$81.0M;…
Music
We’ve covered Lamar’s net worth in a general sense from his music, but what about streaming? Well, in 2016 during one of Lamar’s biggest career years, he “raked in between $921,600 and $1,290,240” in revenue for the streams of To Pimp A Butterfly, according to Newsweek. Currently, he has 86 million monthly listeners, and that will only increase given his coverage of the Superbowl.
How much was he paid for the Superbowl?
For some artists, performing at the Superbowl is the opportunity of a lifetime. Previous artists who have taken to the stage at halftime include Michael Jackson, Madonna, Rhianna, and Usher last year.
For his performance at the Superbowl, there is no huge paycheck. The NFL covers all the expenses, and the performers are paid in exposure and on a “union scale”, according to Brian McCarthy, the NFL’s vice president of communications. This means performers get paid a minimal amount per day as directed by their union.
Newsweek detailed the costs under a SAG-AFRA union agreement, where a performer would be paid $1030 under that union in 2021. With that being said, the cost of the show and the union will determine the performer’s base pay, which for Lamar’s Super Bowl show, we don’t know. This also differs per artist depending on their union and show costs.
Regardless, Lamar’s net worth will increase with the halftime show giving him new exposure and streams.
Kendrick Lamar’s Real Estate
Now into the juicy stuff! His properties. With a net worth as high as Lamar’s, a nice house is just what the doctor ordered. The rapper’s first well-known purchase was a property in Estavale, California in 2013. He paid $523,000 for a house which he sold in 2021 for $825,000.
In 2017 the rapper bought a six-bedroom home in the affluent neighbourhood of Calabasas, California. Sources say this wasn’t his home, but bought as an investment.
In 2019, he acquired a mansion in Manhattan Beach California for $9.7 million. Three years later, he moved onto an even nicer Bel Air ranch-style home for $15 million.
Moving back to his East Coast roots, he reportedly bought a $8.6 million penthouse in Brooklyn in 2023 in the exclusive Brooklyn Bridge Park. A year later in 2024, the rapper bought another California home, a huge compound for $42 million.
Talk about a portfolio!
Endorsements and sponsorships
Of course, he has had several notable partnerships over his career.
Reebok
From 2014 to 2017 Lamar was heavily affiliated with Reebok. He collabed with the shoe brand to release several sneaker lines. His footwear at the Super Bowl, and Nike Air DT Max 96 trainers even had people talking!
The Kendrick Lamar X Reebok Club C shoes were some of the most popular from his time with the brand. In 2017 when his Reebok deal ended, he collabed with Nike on more sneakers. The man likes his shoes, doesn’t he?
PgLang
PgLang is another one of Lamar’s creative and investment projects. PgLang or Programme Language is a creative communications company owned by Lamar and his long-time friend Free. The company was founded in March 2020 during the pandemic and works in music and visual media production. The company has won several Cannes Lion Awards.
Endorsements
Lamar has had plenty of endorsement deals, previously he worked with American Express, Calvin Klein, and Beats By Dre. Recently he has worked with digital money transfer company Cash App through his media company in a campaign called That’s Money. Lamar’s net worth has been considerably improved with his deals and his own company.
Impact
Overall Lamar’s net worth has been significantly boosted by his music, businesses, and real estate. His current viral impact will only serve to generate more wealth for him and attention to his fashion (hello bootcut) jeans and music.
