How Roger Waters Achieved a Net Worth of $310 Million

Roger Waters is a singer and musician known for both being a member of Pink Floyd and being a successful solo artist. He first entered the music industry in 1964 and continues to perform to this day. The longevity of his career and the popularity of his music mean that he now has an estimated net worth of $310 million. So, how did Roger Waters become so rich?

His Early Life

George Roger Waters, known professionally as Roger Waters, was born in Surrey, England, on September 6, 1943. His father died a year later, and his mother moved with Roger and his two brothers to Cambridge. Waters attended Morley Memorial Junior School and then Cambridgeshire High School for Boys. Although he hated school, Waters enjoyed his games lessons, and he was on the school teams for rugby and cricket. Pink Floyd band members Syd Barrett and David Gilmour were childhood friends of Waters. While Barrett attended the same high school as Waters, Gilmour lived nearby. Waters did not meet Nick Mason and Richard Wright, the other founding members of Pink Floyd until he attended Regent Street Polytechnic school of architecture.

Roger Waters and Pink Floyd

Waters, Wright, and Mason first began playing music together in 1963. They had lost interest in their studies and joined a band called Sigma 6 formed by vocalist Keith Noble and bassist Clive Metcalfe. The sixth member of this band, which was sometimes called Megadeath, was Noble’s sister Sheilagh, who occasionally provided vocals for the group. Later in the same year, Noble and Metcalfe left to form a new group. And Waters asked Barrett to join them. The band also invited Bob Klose to join them as a guitarist, and Waters became the group’s bassist.m Barrett became the frontman for the group, also taking on the roles of guitarist and songwriter. They changed their name many times, with some of the early names including Spectrum Five, Leonard’s Lodgers, and the Tea Set. By 1965, they had settled on the name Pink Floyd. They released their debut LP ‘The Piper at the Gates of Dawn’ in 1967.

Barrett’s mental health deteriorated, and he left the group. Waters became the frontman, vocalist, and songwriter for the group in 1968. One of their most successful albums was ‘The Dark Side of the Moon.’ Waters entirely wrote this concept album, and it was one of the most successful rock albums of all-time. Not only did it sell 40 million copies worldwide, but it also spent 736 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart. Some of the other concept albums largely written by Waters for Pink Floyd included ‘Wish You Were Here,’ ‘Animals,’ ‘The Wall,’ and ‘The Final Cut.’ The latter of these was released in 1983, and it was the last album Waters released with Pink Floyd. Roger Waters left Pink Floyd in 1985 due to artistic differences.

His Career as a Solo Artist

Prior to his departure from Pink Floyd, Waters had already begun his solo career. In 1984, he released his debut solo album, ‘The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking.’ Although the album received criticism, Waters toured the album with Eric Clapton, who had played the guitar on the album. In 1987, Waters released his second solo album, ‘Radio K.A.O.S.’ Following the release of this album, he went on a supporting tour in Italy in the same year. When the Berlin Wall was taken down in 1989, Waters staged one of the most memorable rock concerts in history. ‘The Wall- Live in Berlin’ was repeated in July 1990, and one billion people watched the show on the television.

Waters released his third solo album, ‘Amused to Death,’ in 1992, and it was influenced by the events at Tiananmen Square and the Gulf War. The most successful single from this album was ‘What God Wants, Pt. 1’, which reached number 5 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. Roger Waters then took a seven-year hiatus from the music industry, before he embarked on the Flesh tour in 1999. He performed two new songs on tour, which was extended to 2002. The final performance of the tour was at the Glastonbury Festival of Performing Arts in front of an audience of 70 thousand people.

Waters’ career took a different turn in 2004 when he played a prominent role in the creative direction of the Broadway production of The Wall. In the same year, Waters released two new tracks online; ‘Leaving Beirut’ and ‘To Kill the Child.’ Roger Waters, Gilmour, Wright, and Mason reunited in 2005 to perform together for the final time. Their performance took place in London’s Hyde Park for the Live 8 concert. Despite this brief reunion, Waters continued to perform as a solo artist. Between 2005 and the current day, he has continued to release music and perform his music on tour. According to the Roger Waters website his current tour is postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Roger Waters’ Net Worth

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Roger Waters’ net worth is $310 million. He made his fortune through his work in the music industry, both as a member of Pink Floyd and as a solo artist.

His Personal Life

Roger Waters has been married four times and has three children. His first wife was potter Judith Trim, who had been his childhood sweetheart. The couple married in 1969 but divorced in 1975. Judith Trim died in 2001. A year after his first divorce, Waters married Lady Carolyne Christie. Together, they had a son and a daughter, Harry and India. Harry is a musician who has toured with his father, and India is a former model. Waters and Christie divorced in 1992. In 1993, Waters embarked on his third marriage when he wed Priscilla Phillips, says Wikipedia. They had a son, Jack, before they divorced in 2001. Waters then married Laurie Durning, an actress and filmmaker, in 2012. Unfortunately, the marriage ended in 2015 when the couple divorced.