Exactly, 50cent, jay z and diddy = Forbes...
Nelly and Usher part own NBA teams
Will smith, well his not a product of this era, but he opened up other avenues for these guys.
Hip hop is the rock n roll of our era, and the spending power the fans posses is gigantic....think about it, the spending power of young adults in America. Savvy tycoons and investors picked up on this years ago. Chrysler did it with the 300, and now all the tanking car brands - (Pontiac), are trying to follow suit. The only problem is, they are trying to hard. Hip hop, and effective hip hop marketing - is promoting the lifestyle, not the brand.
All the most successful brands are doing it. Coke, Pepsi, Mcdonalds, Apple - you name it. Aside from marketing 101 - (giving consumers their wants and needs), you need to connect with them on a personnel level. You need to have a great product, and back it up with smart marketing. I'm not saying the companys that shoot for the older demo should use hip hop culture - ( that would be foolish), but the real money is in the youth of today, and THAT is why hip hop is so valuable. Anyone who sas otherwsie is a baffon, hip hop (and country, haha) generate gigantic dollars.
Apple is a perfect example of this.... They are by far the most powerful company when it comes to 1.) brand loyalty, and 2.) effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. While they don't have all their dollars tied up in hip hop, the culture and the genre is a huge part of there vibe.
If you don't buy into hip hop, you are behind in the times, period..