Every era produces its fair share of fleeting music stars who rocket to major fame thanks to a sole unstoppable track, but fail to follow it up with anything as big. Even so, a brief burst of chart-busting success can generate bumper long-term earnings, especially for the lucky ones who wrote their breakout song, often setting them up for life, and then some.

So, who really struck gold? Read on for the richest one-hit-wonder artists, based on personal wealth estimates by Celebrity Net Worth, unless otherwise stated. All dollar amounts in US dollars.

Each artist in this round-up is widely associated with one defining global hit single, but several have enjoyed broader success in their home countries, scored additional genre-specific chart placements, released top-selling albums, or built acclaimed careers beyond the spotlight.

For some, the real financial payoff actually came from what they did after that breakthrough moment rather than the song itself, with the bulk of their fortune courtesy of later projects, media roles, shrewd investments, and other revenue streams.

Carly Rae Jepsen first appeared on the radar in 2007 as a Canadian Idol finalist, but truly exploded globally in 2012 with her bubblegum pop confection Call Me Maybe, which she co-wrote. Topping charts in 18 countries, it was that year's best-selling single, shifting an incredible 12.5 million copies. To date, the track has racked up 1.7 billion YouTube views.

Although Jepsen later enjoyed solid successes, including Good Time with Owl City and I Really Like You, none even came close to the once-in-a-generation impact of her signature smash.

The One and Only propelled 19-year-old Chesney Hawkes to global stardom back in 1991, climbing to number one in the UK, the top five across Europe, and the 10th spot in the US. Penned by 1980s hitmaker Nik Kershaw, the punchy anthem featured in the Roger Daltrey movie Buddy's Song, which Hawkes also starred in. But this huge breakthrough proved impossible to match.

The artist's follow-up single I'm a Man Not a Boy peaked at a disappointing 27 in the UK and failed to chart in America. While his music career floundered, Hawkes later found success in musicals and reality TV.

The daughter of veteran singer Pat Boone, Debby Boone hit the big time in 1977 with You Light Up My Life, the sweeping ballad that spent an incredible 10 weeks at number one in the US, topped the Canadian charts, and won her a Grammy, even though her version was a cover of the eponymous movie's original song.

Boone then reinvented herself in country music, scoring a country number one with Are You on the Road to Lovin' Me Again, but she never returned to the mainstream charts. Boone later built a solid Christian music career, winning two additional Grammys, while also appearing in musicals and writing children's books.

Belgian-Australian artist Wally De Backer, aka Gotye, released Somebody That I Used to Know in 2011, with the Kimbra duet rolling out internationally through early 2012. The self-written track became an enormous global earworm. With 10.8 million copies sold worldwide, it was 2012's bestselling single after Carly Rae Jepsen's smash and a double Grammy winner. The video has since topped 2.5 billion YouTube views, the second-largest total in this round-up.

Yet remarkably, Goyte has never landed another charting single, let alone a banger, making him one of the most definitive one-hit-wonder artists of the modern era.

Best known as the elder brother of actors Sean Penn and the late Chris Penn, Michael Penn briefly stepped into the spotlight himself in 1989 with the self-penned No Myth. The jangly pop single became his one and only top 40 hit, reaching number 13 on the US Hot 100 and earning him an MTV VMA for Best New Artist. Given none of his follow-up singles matched its chart performance, he's a textbook one-hit act.

In any case, Penn went on to build a respected second career composing scores for films including Boogie Nights, The Last Kiss, and Sunshine Cleaning, as well as TV shows such as Girls and Masters of Sex.

Born Gabriele Kerner, Nena became a global phenomenon in 1983 when 99 Luftballons topped charts across Europe and Australia and hit number two in the US. Its English remake, 99 Red Balloons, also soared to number one in the UK and Canada.

Although she never matched that worldwide impact again, Nena has remained an A-list star in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, scoring many local hits and branching out into acting and reality TV, including coaching on The Voice of Germany.

Right Said Fred brothers Fred and Richard Fairbrass shot to instant international fame in 1991 with their cheeky co-written anthem I'm Too Sexy, which topped the charts in seven countries, including the US, where it went platinum.

While the British duo notched up further sizeable hits in their native country and elsewhere, most notably UK and Ireland number one Deeply Dippy, nothing else even approached the global success of their debut single. The siblings later enjoyed an unexpected payday when Taylor Swift interpolated I’m Too Sexy on her 2017 hit Look What You Made Me Do, earning them songwriting credits and renewed attention.

Tina Arena broke through internationally in 1994 with Chains, a powerhouse ballad that reached number six in the UK and became her only US Top 40 single. Although the Aussie singer never landed another major global hit, she has had a strong and sustained career at home and in parts of continental Europe, with her French-language tracks especially successful.

Arena has also cultivated a thriving career beyond pop, with several starring roles in prestige musicals such as Notre Dame de Paris and Cabaret.

Before going it alone, Canadian rocker Tom Cochrane spent a decade fronting Red Rider and generating a series of homegrown hits. But it was his 1991 solo single Life Is a Highway that made him a global name, racing to number one in Canada, number six in the US, and the top three in Australia and New Zealand.

Despite the song’s enduring fame, which was boosted by Rascal Flatts' 2006 cover for the Cars soundtrack, Cochrane has never repeated that level of international chart success. Most of his post-Red Rider hits have been confined to Canada, where he remains a major touring act.

Finnish DJ Darude became a global cult figure in 1999 when trance stonker Sandstorm stormed the international charts, selling well over two million copies. It remains one of the most recognisable dance tracks of all time.

Feel the Beat and a series of later Finnish number ones kept Darude chart-relevant at home and in Europe, but none of his later releases replicated the runaway global dominance of Sandstorm.

After rising to fame with new wave girl band The Go-Go's as its rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist, Jane Wiedlin scored her only major solo hit in 1988 with Rush Hour, which reached number nine in the US and 12 in the UK.

While she didn't match bandmate Belinda Carlisle's run of global smashes, Wiedlin has forged a stellar post-Go-Go's career through acting roles, further songwriting work – including a Keith Urban US number one – and contributions to the Broadway musical Head Over Heels.

Macy Gray's raspy jazz-infused voice was absolutely everywhere in 1999 when her soulful co-written track I Try topped the charts in Ireland and New Zealand, peaked at six and five in the UK and US respectively, and earned her a shiny Grammy.

The R&B artist never had another major US hit single but did enjoy moderate chart success in other parts of the world, while her albums notched up decent sales. Beyond music, Gray has appeared in films like Training Day, Spider-Man, and For Colored Girls, and more recently, popped up in reality shows such as The Masked Singer.

Cassie burst onto the scene in 2006 with Me & U, a sleek, minimalist R&B track that peaked at number three in the US and lit up charts worldwide. But her musical ascent soon stalled, something she later attributed to her long, turbulent relationship with Sean 'Diddy' Combs, which she says derailed her career.

The singer's allegations were thrust into the spotlight after the infamous 2016 hotel surveillance video emerged showing Combs violently assaulting her. Cassie has since been decisively vindicated: she secured a $20 million (£15m) settlement from Comb and is due a further $10 million (£7.5m) from the hotel. Plus, in July, she saw her abuser convicted of two counts of transportation for prostitution.

Chris Isaak's big moment came with Wicked Game, which caught fire in 1990 after director David Lynch used it in his cult movie Wild at Heart. The smouldering song, paired with Herb Ritts' award-winning black-and-white video starring supermodel Helena Christensen, soared to number six in the US and became a global hit.

The singer-songwriter went on to notch up a modest showing on the UK and Australian singles charts, but never achieved another US Billboard 100 smash. However, Isaak has sustained a long, lucrative career through touring, regular album releases, and a steady stream of TV and film roles.

Fresh from hit Aussie show Neighbours, Natalie Imbruglia parlayed her soap-star visibility into a pop career with 1997's Torn, a shimmering cover that became her hallmark song and a global juggernaut, topping charts in six countries, hitting number two in the UK, reaching the US top 50, and becoming a long-running radio staple.

Imbruglia never managed to repeat the success of Torn, though she did have a few more hits in the UK, Australia, and Italy. Nonetheless, the versatile artist has carved out a varied career in acting, theatre, and reality TV, winning season three of The Masked Singer UK.

Wherever you were in the world in summer 2005, you couldn't escape James Blunt's You're Beautiful. The acoustic ballad shot to number one in the UK, US, and dozens of other countries, earning critical praise even as many listeners found it cloying, overplayed, and as per Rolling Stone, one of the “most annoying” songs ever.

Blunt's US appeal waned after You're Beautiful, but he has had steady success in the UK and elsewhere.

Vanilla Ice, real name Robert Van Winkle, became a pop-culture supernova in 1990 when Ice Ice Baby made history as the first hip-hop track to hit number one in the US and UK. But the rapper's meteoric rise triggered an equally dramatic backlash, fuelled by questions over his authenticity and the spectacular flop of his 1991 film Cool As Ice. His music career quickly flatlined.

Still, as co-writer of Ice Ice Baby, the one-hit wonder has made millions of dollars in royalties from the track over the years. And his career has branched out into other lucrative directions, including as a property renovator on his long-running The Vanilla Ice Project show.

German composer Harold Faltermeyer delivered one of the most emblematic instrumentals of the 1980s with the Beverly Hills Cop theme Axel F, a global synth smash that's earned him a fortune in royalties ever since.

A protégé of Giorgio Moroder, Flatermeyer also created the Top Gun Anthem and co-wrote hits such as The Heat Is On. But Axel F is his one major success as a charting artist, making him a rare behind-the-scenes one-hit wonder whose legacy vastly outstrips his chart history.

Sir Mix-a-Lot served up one of the biggest novelty rap smashes ever in 1992. His Baby Got Back song barrelled to the number one spot in the US, where it went double-platinum. The track remains his primary source of income.

Though the rapper's mainstream music career dipped soon after, he's been able to boost his generous royalties over the years with licensing deals, production work, and TV appearances, hence the very respectable net worth total.

Together with the New Bohemians, Edie Brickell charmed the world in 1988 with What I Am, a folky alt-pop song that topped the charts in Canada, hit number seven in the US, and cracked the UK top 20.

While a second global hit single proved elusive, Brickell went on to release solo albums, form new bands, and win plaudits for her collaborations with comic Steve Martin. Her net worth reflects decades of touring, songwriting, and her long marriage to Paul Simon.

Hakeem Seriki, aka Chamillionaire, broke big in 2006 with Ridin', the Grammy-winning smash he co-wrote with Krayzie Bone. It topped the US chart, hit number two in the UK, and became one of the quintessential rap singles of the era. Chamillionaire's mainstream music run was brief, but his bank balance eventually skyrocketed thanks to a genius pivot into business and tech.

Living up to his name, the one-hit-wonder reached multimillionaire status on the back of ventures in everything from a custom car business to a modelling agency, along with judicious early investments in Maker Studios, Dropbox, Lyft, and other Midas-touch startups.

Already an established soft-rock singer in Ireland and parts of Europe, Chris de Burgh saw his entire career eclipsed in 1986 by The Lady in Red, the syrupy slow-dance staple that became his signature, whether he liked it or not. The ballad topped the charts in the UK and Canada, hit number three in the US, and split listeners down the middle. Although it was adored by many, the track was voted the third-worst song of the 1980s in a Rolling Stone poll.

As the song's sole writer, de Burgh has earned decades of healthy royalties, easily outstripping the returns from his earlier and later singles, though he has sold more than 47 million albums.

Nick Cannon first broke through as a teen on the stand-up comedy circuit and Nickelodeon's All That, eventually landing his own show on the network. A rap career then beckoned, and he had a modest US hit in 2003 with Gigolo, a collaboration with now-disgraced R Kelly.

Cannon's stint in music went nowhere, but his subsequent TV hosting career has truly paid off: he reportedly earns $20 million (£15m) a year for The Masked Singer. And just as well. The star has a famously large family to support and says he spends a hefty $3 million (£2.3m) a year on his 12 children.

As his alter ego Psy, Park Jae-sang unleashed a global frenzy in 2012 with Gangnam Style, the first K-pop song to dominate the global charts. A perfect storm of meme-ready choreography and viral absurdity, it sold 9.7 million copies, becoming the third best-selling single of 2012. The song continues to wow as the most-viewed track in this entire round-up, with 5.7 billion YouTube views, and counting.

As the sole writer, Psy has reaped huge royalties from downloads, ads, lucrative endorsements, and more, which shows just how money-spinning an international hit can be.

Rafael Ruiz and Antonio Romero, aka Los Del Río, were already seasoned performers in their native Spain when their flamenco-pop tune Macarena was remixed by the Bayside Boys in 1995, a tweak that turned it into an international blockbuster. The track hit number one in the US and Canada, spawned a global dance craze, and became the best-selling Spanish single of all time, shifting 11 million copies.

In 2002, VH1 declared the song the Greatest One-Hit Wonder of All Time. The duo continues to bask in its glory and reap its rewards, with their combined net worth now $65 million (£48.9m), according to online estimates.

The frontman of Swiss electronic duo Yello, Dieter Meier co-wrote their 1985 track Oh Yeah. Its placement in Ferris Bueller's Day Off turned it into a global licensing goldmine, with the synth song later cropping up in everything from The Secret of My Success to South Park, Glee, SNL, The Simpsons, and major ad campaigns. 

According to 2019 reports, the royalties from Oh Yeah became the seed money for Meier's real fortune: he poured the income into investments spanning transport, currency firms, vineyards, fine foods, and art projects, amassing wealth pegged at $175 million (£131m) back then and likely higher today.

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