‘Forbes’ Names Madonna Highest-Paid Musician

Madonna has topped Forbes' list of highest-paid musicians.

The 55-year-old singer is still the queen of pop according to the magazine, earning $125 million from June 2012 to May 2013 thanks to her sell-out MDMA Tour, miles ahead of her nearest rival Lady Gaga, who raked in $80 million. Rockers Bon Jovi and country singer Toby Keith were next, with Coldplay coming in fifth place.

Despite lackluster sales of her latest album, Madonna made her fortune from fans paying $100 a ticket to see her tour - which grossed $305 million - as well as from merchandise sales, a clothing line, fragrance and investments in companies like Vita Coco. This comes as little surprise, since Madonna had already been crowned the world's highest-earning celebrity by Forbes in August, with filmmaker Steven Spielberg, author E.L. James, radio personality Howard Stern and X Factor boss Simon Cowell rounding out the top five.

However, the magazine estimates Lady Gaga could easily top the highest-paid musicians list next year because her current earnings were affected by her hip injury, which forced her to cut her Born This Way Ball tour short. Had she completed the tour, she could potentially have made $200 million.

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Lady Gaga Still Working on ARTPOP

Lady Gaga still has "a lot of work left" to do on her ARTPOP album.

The "Judas" singer is preparing to release her third full length album - rumored to be a double - after her Born This Way Ball world tour wraps up in March. Producer and collaborator Zedd, who has been working on tracks with Gaga, told MTV news, "We've been working on it for over a year now. There's still a lot of work left, so we're definitely gonna work on this project for the next month. I did about 10 ideas, and they were all between almost finished songs up to the piano. And then when we were on tour together in Asia for almost two months, we had a lot of time to go back and forth and pick the ones we really like and work on them. But they're still all really rough - it could be five, it could be 10."

The US leg of the Born This Way Ball kicked off earlier this month and came to the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Sunday, where Gaga delivered a typically flamboyant show, with some 12 costume changes and elaborate stage sets including a meat grinder, her castle and the singer emerging by birthing herself from a inflatable belly flanked by fishnet-clad legs. She also talked about her past as a go-go dancer and how her friends used to strip in order to pay their college fees. "I'm really just one of the highest paid strippers in the world, naturally," she told the crowd.

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Lady Gaga’s Tour to Offer Free Therapy

Always one to try something bold and socially helpful, Lady Gaga announced that her upcoming Born This Way Ball shows will provide free counseling sessions to attendees who seek it.

Therapists will be available at a pre-show "tailgating experience" on the BornBrave Bus, which will also feature food, games, and DJ sets from Lady Starlight.

"BornBrave Bus Is a place where mental health + depression are taken seriously w/ no judgement, FREE real help available to all... I feel like most kids don't look for help because they feel embarrassed so mom + I wanted to break the stigmas around 'help' and make it fun," Gaga wrote on her Facebook.

In light of recent shootings and the LGBT community's continuing struggle for acceptance in some areas, Gaga's spotlight on mental health is quite admirable.

The Born This Way Ball kicks off in Vancouver on January 11.

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