In 2006, you couldn’t turn on a hip-hop station without hearing Hakeem “Chamillionaire” Temidayo Seriki’s and Krayzie Bone’s number-one single “Ridin’.” It spent 31 weeks on the Billboard charts, and MTV and BET hadn’t totally abandoned music videos yet so fans could watch the visuals too. After his single “Get Up” with Ciara spent 20 weeks on the charts, peaking at number seven, it may have seemed like Chamillionaire disappeared. Only he didn’t. He’s been active in other avenues, including advocating for women or minority startups with E-40, setting aside $10,000 for a Black-owned business, helping an immigrant who was at risk of being deported, and investing in a massive amount of businesses.
On the Music Scene With Chamillionaire
Although “The Mixtape Messiah” released mixtapes galore, he had only two studio albums: 2005’s The Sound of Revenge and 2007’s Ultimate Victory. More than two decades later, his 994K subscribers on YouTube and 1.9 million monthly listeners on Spotify are still patiently waiting on any new music he may drop. As is the case with music artists for the past century, he had creative differences with his then-label Universal. While it soured him on labels, that didn’t totally stop him from making original music for the next few years, including 2014 singles “Go Getta” and “Watching Breaking Bad.” However, music streaming and album sales aren’t where Chamillionaire’s net worth is largely coming from.
From Rapper to Techie, Chamillionaire Became a Venture Capitalist
In the early 2000s, he looked at an industry that was commonly affiliated with the hip-hop industry: cars. He put money into the Houston-based, customized auto dealer Fly Rydes. Additionally, he invested in the self-driving automation tech company Cruise Automation in 2013, which was sold to General Motors for over $1 billion three years later.
Then, he started branching out into industries that may have been less common to him. In 2015, he was named by Forbes as the first “entrepreneur in residence” (EIR) at Upfront Ventures, an investment firm valued at $280 million.
“I walked around the music industry for a bunch of years, right?” Chamillionaire told Vice. “I saw a lot of rich people. I didn’t see wealthy. I got into the tech industry, I see wealthy every day.”
In 2015, he made a point of coming to Upfront Ventures on a weekly basis with his producer Nsilo Reddick to serve as the firm’s new EIR, a chance for an entrepreneur to work with an investment team to plot out their next project.
He invested in Makers Studio and Cruise, which were acquired by Disney ($500 million) and General Motors ($1 billion), according to Forbes. Chamillionaire’s investment in the startup was $1.5 million, and his return on investment (ROI) was reportedly more than $20 million. He also invested in Ring and Lyft.
Then came Convoz’s 15-second clips that people could upload to its video-centric platform. It also gave celebrities and everyday fans the option to interact more personally together. Because the app requires users to show their faces, trolls and frenemies of celebrities usually stay away.
What Is Chamillionaire’s Net Worth Now?
Chamillionaire refused to tap his fingers and wait for venture capital firms to pay attention to Black founders. He brought attention to them himself with Access 12, a private, invite-only investment company that recruits Black millionaires and music artists. Some celebrities involved in Access 12 include Megan Thee Stallion and Kelly Rowland. Their latest investment was Parfait, a Black-women-owned company that blends wig customization with facial technology.
By branching outside of the norm, working in industries from cars to hair to tech to videos, it’s no wonder that the “Ridin” rapper has a rumored net worth of $50 million. According to him, instead of trying to be saved economically, he wants his followers to pay attention because “all the resources we need are within our own reach.”
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