In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the most hip side project for a celebrity to do was to launch a clothing line. Now, instead of persuading their adoring fans to dress like them, celebs have moved on to a new hip side project that entails asking consumers to smell like them. These days, a horde of celebrities are launching their own fragrances, including most recently, Rihanna and Mary J. Blige. Heck, there’s even been talk of creating a Michael Jackson “tribute” perfume line, but that’s a whole ‘nother story.
The business of celebrity perfumes is pleasingly lucrative with the top 10 bestselling celebrity perfumes from 2010 bringing in $215 million in the U.S, according to Euromonitor International. Even more interesting is the fact that regardless if a fragrance does not not reflect the actual smell of the celebrity themselves, their fans will still run out to buy a bottle because it represents a connection to those celebrities. Forbes recently compiled a list of the top-selling celebrity perfumes, and here are a few black celebs that made the cut:
Beyoncé
Heat
$21 Million
When Beyoncé’s Heat launched last year, it wasn’t so much the perfume itself that initially caught the public’s eye–it was the steamy commercial she shot to promote the fragrance. Apparently, her commercial was a little too hot for the U.K. because they banned it from airing during daytime hours. But that little hiccup did nothing to affect sales, as the perfume line racked up a healthy $21 million in sales.
P. Diddy
Unforgivable
$18 million
Diddy launched his signature fragrance, Unforgivable, in 2006 and it became a top-selling celebrity scent amassing $75 million in sales (albeit that was global sales).Unfortunately for Sean John, current sales for Unforgivable are down, reports Forbes. Since Unforgivable’s debut in 2006, Diddy has introduced other scents, including a female version of the scent and a new cologne called I Am King of the Night.
Diddy has caught some heat over the years for his fragrance venture; in the fall of 2007, his too-hot-for-tv commercial for Unforgivable was banned by MTV, and in early 2009, Diddy was sued by an artist who claimed that the mogul ripped off his design and used it for the Unforgivable cologne bottle.
Usher
Usher for Men
$16 million
Usher partnered with Elizabeth Arden to launch his scent in 2008 called Usher for Men. According to the website Fragrantica, Usher’s scent includes smells of sea water, fruity notes, nutmeg, basil and guaiac wood. His cologne retails for around $22 for a 2.4-ounce bottle.
Jennifer Lopez
Glow
$12 million
Okay, so we know J.Lo is Puerto Rican, but she’s been adopted by the black community plenty of times throughout her career. But more so, J.Lo has been holding steady in the celebrity fragrance game for at least eight years now. Even when her career was looking down, her fragrances always sold well. In 2006, her Glow perfume brought in $47 million worldwide. J.Lo now has 16 scents on the market, including Blue Glow, Desso and Live.
