Based on figures from Forbes, Michael's estimate career earnings for the year ending 2014 will surpass $2 billion (when adjusted for inflation). Roughly $1.1-1.2 billion of that was earned during MJ's lifetime, with a further $700M+ earned following his death in 2009 (this year's earnings will top $2 billion).




From Forbes:

"If Michael Jackson were still alive, tomorrow would be his 56th birthday. And though he passed away more than five years ago, fans across the country–from his onetime home of Las Vegas to his birthplace of Gary, Indiana–and around the globe will be celebrating the King of Pop as though he never left."

"In many ways, he hasn’t. Songs from his latest posthumous album, Xscape, have been soaring across the summer airwaves. And a financial perspective, Jackson couldn’t be more alive: he’s raked in over $700 million in the past half-decade–the most lucrative stretch of his career since the late 1980s–and has out-earned every living act measured by FORBES over that span."

"By buying the Beatles’ publishing catalogue in 1985, Jackson flipped the paradigm of artist-as-employee on its head, replacing it with the notion of artist-as-owner. He then pioneered new ways of monetizing superstardom, launching his own clothing line, sneakers, video games and more–paving the way for modern celebrity-moguls like Jay Z and Diddy."

Source.



MJ has the highest grossing Cirque show per year touring currently (>$160M/year) and the third highest grossing Cirque show per year in Vegas (>$100M/year). His posthumous record Xscape has sold over 1.5 million copies in 3.5 months. MJ's estate retains 50% of Sony/ATV's music publishing catalog which has the rights to over 2 million songs.

THIS is pop royalty.