Megan Thee Stallion Is Megan Thee Mogul In Her Forbes Cover Interview | Forbes

Since 2019, Megan Thee Stallion has surged ahead on hip-hop’s inside rail, leaping from $500 gigs in her hometown of Houston to partnering with music’s biggest stars—Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, BTS and Dua Lipa. In 2020, Cardi B tapped Megan to collaborate on “WAP,” a lascivious anthem of female sexual positivity that became thee hit of the year with nearly 2 billion streams on Spotify and YouTube. “That was the song for her. I don’t think it would have made sense for anybody else,” Cardi B says. “She added that spark.”

Megan, who landed on Forbes’ annual 30 Under 30 list three years ago, is emblematic of a brash new class of female hip-hop stars. She and acts like Cardi B, City Girls and Doja Cat are embracing an unapologetically raunchy style, formerly the exclusive territory of male rappers. Millions of young female fans—whom Megan calls “hotties”—can’t get enough. “She’s so empowering and so sexy,” Cardi B says. “She’s mega-million Megan.”

Billion-dollar brands, which a decade ago would have wanted nothing to do with Megan’s raw, often X-rated songs, are lining up. She has recently signed endorsement deals with Nike, Revlon, Cash App and Popeyes. “The cultural influence that hip-hop and artists like Megan now have is unmatched,” says Stacy Taffet, a top marketing execu­tive at Frito-Lay, who partnered with Megan to tout Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. “Our Super Bowl campaign with her outperformed a lot of what we’ve done in the past and exceeded all our expectations.”

Forget generic endorsements. Megan is interested only in campaigns that capture her swagger and style. “I cannot fake it,” she says. “If I’m not naturally into it, I don’t want to sell it.”

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