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Nas may have just come up on some serious bread. Apparently, Nas was an early investor in Ring, a company that makes video doorbells. In late February, Amazon agreed to purchase Ring for $1.2 billion dollars. WeBuyBlack.com reports that Nas has made over $40 million from his investment in Amazon’s newest asset.
Online sources estimate Nas’ net worth to be anywhere from $17 million to $52 million, making his the windfall from his investment a staggering amount regardless of where he’s at in that range. This come-up didn’t exactly come out of nowhere; Nas has been on his entrepreneurial hustle.
After the release of his 2012 album Life Is Good, Nas shifted the focus of his career from music to business ventures. In years that followed his last album, he became an associate publisher at Mass Appeal Magazine, launched the streetwear outlet 12amrun, and played a large role in launching his own venture capital fund: Queensbridge Venture Partners.
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Through Queensbridge Venture Partners, Nas has invested in over 40 companies, focusing on businesses in the tech industry, such as Ring. Queensbridge Venture Partners invests $100,000 to $500,000 in a company, but for each 100 companies looking for investments, less than three receive funding. It is reported that the fund invests in about 20 businesses per year.
Aside from Ring, Queensbridge Venture Partners has invested in companies like Coinbase, Lyft, Dropbox and RobinHood. However, none of these companies have had such extraordinary success as Ring so far. After their deal with Amazon went through, Ring released this statement:
” Ring is committed to our mission to reduce crime in neighborhoods by providing effective yet affordable home security tools to our Neighbors that make a positive impact on our homes, our communities, and the world. We’ll be able to achieve even more by partnering with an inventive, customer-centric company like Amazon. We look forward to being a part of the Amazon team as we work toward our vision for safer neighborhoods.”
Aside from tech startups, Nas is currently invested in the New York City based chain Sweet Chick, known for it’s chicken and waffles. In the future, he hopes to expand the brand outside of New York state borders.
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