8 Rock Stars That Went From Riches To Rags And Back

Everyone loves a “rags to riches” story, but we also love to hear about “rags to riches and back to rags” stories. Some end there, others have happier endings with the star coming back to the “rich” side of life.

Rock Stars are famous for their extravagant lifestyles. Who went from riches to rags and back?

We have all heard stories about how famous rock stars blow through their riches as though it will be a never ending supply of money coming their way. Private jets, flashy cars and opulent homes seems to be the recipe for disaster for them.

The 1978 Joe Walsh hit, “Life’s Been Good” is a song based on the over the top life of a  rich rock star, Maserati, gold records and mansions. Joe Walsh, says he never owned a Maserati  but knew plenty of stars that did and served as the inspiration for the song. He by the way is not broke (thanks to endless years of travel with the Eagles and of course getting sober), but Joe knows plenty of stars that did go broke.

Some come back from the brink of broke and some don’t

There are plenty of rock stars that have made the round trip from rags to riches and back to rags without ever making the whole return trip. These are the folks that either mismagaged their money when it was coming in or blew it all away with and endless party lifestyle. Maybe these are the rockers you see on some lame reality show that  exploits their story or perhaps you will find them working the “oldies concert circuit” in a never ending quest to return to the life of riches.

Here are 8 Rock Stars that went from Rags to Riches and back to Rags (and some that got rich again)

• 1. Mick Fleetwood

  He claims he’s been bankrupt about SEVEN times. Quote, “I’m like Donald Trump.” Mick claims he’s snorted $60 million worth of cocaine over the course of his career, and once sunk his fortune into an Australian farm. Of course Mick has made his fortune back many times due to the constant touring with extravagant ticket prices.

• 2. Meat Loaf

  His 1977 album “Bat Out of Hell” sold more than 40 million copies.  But six years after its release he declared bankruptcy.  He had lost a lot of money on lawsuits related to the royalties he was getting.
  Meatloaf passed away in 2022 and his estate is still making money from royalties and radio airplay

• 3. Ted Nugent

  He declared bankruptcy in 1980 following a string of bad investments, including a mink farm, a herd of Clydesdales, and a failed hotel in Flint, Michigan.

  Ted is back to riches with a net worth reported to be $10 million.

• 4. Cyndi Lauper

  She went broke BEFORE she got famous.  She was in a group called Blue Angel, and was eventually sued by their manager.  She finally climbed out of the hole when her debut album, “She’s So Unusual”, became a hit.

  Her net worth is listed at $30 million, so this girl can still have fun if she wants to.

• 5. Willie Nelson

  The IRS told him in 1990 that he owed $32 million in back taxes.  He was able to square up by 1993, though. After his fortunes went up in smoke he has since built his net worth back to $25 million. That’s a lot of green. 

• 6. Courtney Love

  By her own estimate, she’s lost $500 million to shifty lawyers, managers, and banks over the years, and she’s been dead broke several times. That’s not exactly Nirvana, but thanks to her late husband Kurt Cobain she has a net worth of $150 million  I guess you would say she’s out of the Hole

• 7. Billy Joel

  He hired his own brother-in-law to handle his affairs . . . and got screwed.  The guy stole millions from him, while also taking out loans and making risky investments in his name.

  Don’t worry about Billy Joel, he’s floating on the river of dreams with a net worth of $225 million.

• 8. John Oates

  He found out he was broke in 1987 . . . and freely admits he just lived above his means.  At the time, he claimed that the $50 in his wallet was his only liquid asset.

  John has rebuilt his net worth to over $30millions so once again he’s a Rich Boy!

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