Marshmello Tops Forbes’ “30 Under 30” List With $45 Million In Earnings

Whether you love him or hate him one thing remains clear, Marshmello is dominating mainstream EDM. The masked DJ has topped Forbes’ “30 Under 30” campaign marking the first time someone from the dance music realm has ever made the top of the coveted list.

In terms of monetary figures, Forbes revealed their list of top paid DJ’s and Marshmello ranked at No. 5 with Calvin Harris taking the top spot with his earnings listed at $48 million a year.

Why has Marshmello been dominating mainstream EDM?

Let’s look at the facts!

• In the past two years, Marshmello earned over $44 million.
• Marshmello’s YouTube channel has taken the No. 50 spot on most watched channels with an astounding 1.4 million subscribers per year and 250 million views per month.
• Crossover hits such as “Happier” and “Wolves” with mainstream pop icons like Bastille and Selena Gomez has made his music appeal to a much wider array of listeners thus amplifying his reach.
• His mysteriousness (i.e. his lack of actual identity) adds to his appeal, people want to know who he is. It’s not just excellent branding, it’s excellent entertainment with music that has mass appeal with an identifiable symbol.

Marshmello showed up one day with Mello beats and his head encased in a giant marshmallow-shaped helmet and the industry didn’t know what to make of him. Fast-forward five years and the young DJ/producer has upgraded his helmet (which costs over $50,000) and this became the symbol in which he bolstered his career on.

Yet Marshmello, despite his unique brand and accessible music, is turning the music industry upside down with his lack of interest in traditional industry norms. To this day Mello has never signed a major record deal with an established label. He doesn’t run his own label or seek to catapult the careers of people following in his stead in this manner. His solitary focus is on blanketing the world with his Mello sound and universal relatable content, paired with pop industry powerhouses.

He’s topped lists of all sorts and it’s no surprise why. Marshmello has established himself as a global EDM phenomenon and he’s here to stay.

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