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How George Strait Achieved a Net Worth of $300 Million

George Strait concert

The country music industry is huge. For proof, look no further than the fact that country music star George Strait is believed to have a current net worth of $300 million as of May 2019. With that said, it is important to note that Strait is one of the most successful country music stars ever, meaning that his numbers are by no means standard for country musicians as a whole.

How Did George Strait Reach His Current Net Worth?

For starters, Strait has had a lot of time to build up his fortune, seeing as how he is now in his 60s. In short, the man was born in a place called Poteet, which is one of the numerous communities that make up the San Antonio metropolitan area. However, Strait actually grew up in Pearsall, which was where his father was working as a mathematics teacher in between working on his cattle ranch. As such, it is no exaggeration to say that Strait has a fair amount of experience with ranching, seeing as how he would work on his father's cattle ranch on the weekends as well as in the summers.

Anyways, Strait became interested in music when he was still in high school. Due to this, he started listening to the Beatles as well as other popular musicians in those times. Furthermore, Strait was so influenced by them that he started playing in a rock and roll garage band, which might not be what most people expected. However, he became more and more interested in country music over time, which wasn't caused by him listening to radio but rather by him listening to live music performances. Something that Strait has stated was ubiquitous in Texan towns in those times.

With that said, while Strait remained very interested in music, it took some time before he got his music career off of the ground. For instance, he made a choice to elope with his high school sweetheart Norma, which was soon followed by him choosing to enlist in the U.S. Army. However, it is interesting to note that while Strait was enlisted in the U.S. Army, he was playing with a U.S. Army-sponsored band, meaning that he was continuing to hone his skills throughout that period. By 1975, Strait had been honorably discharged from the U.S. Army, with the result that he enrolled in what was then called the Southwestern Texas State University to complete an agriculture degree.

It was in college that Strait joined up with a country band called Stoney Ridge, having seen a flyer about their need for a new vocalist. For a time, the resulting group grew and grew in prominence, with the result that they had become something of a regional sensation that was big enough to open up for more national acts. There were multiple attempts by the band to secure a record deal, but the record executives who came to listen to them play weren't convinced by their ability to sell, with the result that Strait was frustrated enough that he almost decided to stop pursuing a music career in preference for a job focused on designing cattle pens. Fortunately for country music fans, his wife Norma talked him into giving his music career one more year, with the result that he was given a one-song chance by MCA.

In early 1981, Strait released that first single called "Unwound," which proved to be popular enough to reach number six on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. As a result, he was given the go-ahead for a full-fledged album, thus resulting in the release of Strait Country in September of 1981. Said album established Strait as a true name of note in the country music scene, not least because critics hailed it as a return to traditionalist roots that stood out compared to the pop music-influenced material that was prevalent in the country music scene of those times.

Since that time, Strait has continued making music. Moreover, he has managed to become more and more successful, which can be seen by a number of factors. For example, Strait has the honor of having the most number one singles on country music charts. Likewise, Strait has had a single enter the Top 10 on a Billboard chat for 30 consecutive years. On top of this, he has managed to sell 69 million albums in just the United States, which is a number that is still growing in the present day. Summed up, it should be very clear that Strait isn't just one of the most successful country musicians but also one of the most successful musicians of modern times. Period.

Naturally, this means that the overwhelming majority of Strait's current net worth was built up through his music as well as his music-related activities. This is particularly true because he has been making music as well as heading out on tour to support his music on a very consistent basis throughout. With that said, it is interesting to note that Strait has had revenues coming in from other sources as well. One example would be how he was bringing in money from cattle ranching when he was still getting started in the country music scene. Another example would be how he has been in a number of movies, though for the most part, their success has been relatively limited.

Further Considerations

For the time being, Strait's net worth is estimated to be around $300 million. This is an inexact figure for the simple reason that the relevant resources don't have perfect access to the financial information needed to produce anything more precise. However, it seems probable that said figure will continue to grow in the years and years to come. This is because Strait is still making country music in the present, as shown by how he has just released a 30th studio album in March of 2019.

Allen Lee

Written by Allen Lee

Allen Lee is a Toronto-based freelance writer who studied business in school but has since turned to other pursuits. He spends more time than is perhaps wise with his eyes fixed on a screen either reading history books, keeping up with international news, or playing the latest releases on the Steam platform, which serve as the subject matter for much of his writing output. Currently, Lee is practicing the smidgen of Chinese that he picked up while visiting the Chinese mainland in hopes of someday being able to read certain historical texts in their original language.

Read more posts by Allen Lee

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