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Sep 4, 2020 · Sep 4, 2020, 8:29 AM PDT. Oprah Winfrey made a multimillion-dollar fortune from her media empire. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson. Only seven of the United States' 615 billionaires are Black, Forbes ...
- Who Is Robert L. Johnson?
- Early Life
- Career
- Personal Life
Robert L. Johnson founded Black Entertainment Television (BET) in 1979 with his wife, Sheila. He became the first African American billionaire after selling the network to Viacom in 2001. Johnson has since started a new business, the RLJ Companies, and has invested in an NBA team, a film company, and political causes and campaigns.
Robert L. Johnson was born in Hickory, Mississippi, on April 8, 1946. He spent the majority of his childhood in Freeport, Illinois. Johnson graduated from Freeport High School in 1964, and studied history at the University of Illinois. He then earned a master’s degree in international affairs from Princeton University.
In 1979, Johnson and his wife Sheila founded Black Entertainment Television, the first cable network targeting the African American market. It was launched in January 1980, initially broadcasting for two hours a week. In 1991, BET became the first African American-owned company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The network has continued ...
Johnson was married to Sheila Johnson from 1969 to 2002. The couple, who co-founded BET, divorced a year after selling the network to Viacom. They have two children. Sheila received one of the largest documented settlements in United States history and subsequently married the judge who presided over the divorce proceedings.
Viacom acquired BET in 2001 for a reported $3 billion; Johnson earned over $1 billion from the sale, making him the first black American billionaire. [3] [9] [12] [14] He remained BET CEO until 2006. [12]
- Aliko Dangote: $14.2 billion. Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote saw his fortune grow from around $11.5 billion on last year’s list. Dangote founded and owns nearly 88 percent of publicly-traded Dangote Cement.
- Mike Adenuga: $8.3 billion. Adenuga, Nigeria’s second-richest man, made his first million at 26 selling lace and distributing soft drinks, according to Forbes.
- Abdulsamad Rabiu: $6.9 billion. Rabiu is the founder of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate with interests in sugar refining, cement production, real estate, steel, port concessions, manufacturing, oil, gas and shipping.
- Robert F. Smith: $8 billion. Smith made his fortune through the private equity firm, Vista Equity Partners, which he founded in 2000. A graduate of Cornell, he pledged $50 million (personally and through a foundation) to the university in 2016.
Reginald F. Lewis was the first African American to build a billion dollar company. He was one of the wealthiest African Americans in the 1980's, and also one of the first to be included on the Forbes list of the richest Americans. Lewis was born on December 7, 1942, in Baltimore, Maryland.
Nov 8, 2021 · Nov 8th, 2021. Lewis broke through a number of glass ceilings to become a successful lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist. Michael Scott. Although prior Black entrepreneurs had amassed large fortunes, Reginald F. Lewis was the first Black American to build a billion- dollar company.
Nov 8, 2023 · When the first Black billionaires emerged, most stemmed from the entertainment industry. In 2001, Black Entertainment Television cofounder Bob Johnson was the world’s wealthiest Black person with an estimated net worth of $1.6 billion.
