Beyonce & Jay-Z Named World's Highest Paid Celebrity Couple.

Jay-Z & Beyonce

Forbes Magazine just named Jay-Z and Beyonce the highest paid celebrity couple in the world. Together they made $78 million - from May 2011 to May 2012. Beyonce - $40m, Jay Z - $38m. And Beyonce took a break for most of the year.

Take Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z, for example. Last year’s runners-up on the list of The World’s Highest-Paid Celebrity Couples, the duo has now climbed one spot to top this year’s ranking. Knowles, who took a break from her hectic touring schedule in 2011 to give birth to daughter Blue Ivy Carter, still collects big paychecks from old hits. Besides, the singer’s new album went platinum in the U.S., not to mention her non-musical ventures and endorsement deals, which all helped to bring her total earnings between May 1, 2011 and May 1, 2012 to $40 million, according to data from the latest Celebrity 100 list.

Jay-Z & Beyonce

And as the male half of music’s first couple, Jay-Z isn’t far behind his wife. The hip-hop mogul made millions from Watch the Throne, his musical collaboration with pal Kanye West, and even more from the tour that followed. Add to that a bevy of non-musical enterprises such as ad firm Translation and cosmetics company Carol’s Daughter and the result is a staggering $38 million that he has brought home in twelve months, putting the couple’s annual income at $78 million.