How Nick Cannon’s company made $100M in 2009 from headphones while Beats by Dre had all the hype

Entertainer Nick Cannon is known for many things; he is a film star, comedian, TV and radio host, musician, writer, director, executive producer, and philanthropist. And he is also a successful entrepreneur.

Cannon is the founder of the record label and television company, NCredible Entertainment, which became a silent competitor to Beats by Dre in 2009. While Dre’s Beats got all the attention, Cannon’s company was racking up massive revenue.

According to him, NCredible Entertainment generated $100 million in 2009 through the sale of headphones. He confirmed the revenue figures in an interview with “The Diary Of A CEO” podcast.

His company secured a partnership deal with Monster to release the Bluetooth headphones, which started being sold at stores including Walmart and Radio Shack. According to Walmart’s website, the features on the accessories included a built-in microphone, rechargeable battery for 15 hours of listening, and ear-cup controls.

While Beats By Dre’s Solo headphones were listed at $200 in 2009, his product price point was listed at $32.99.

“I did a headphone brand very similar to Beats by Dre with Monster as the parent company,” Cannon explained to “The Diary Of A CEO” host Steven Bartlett, according to AfroTech.

He continued, “They did Beats for $300 and they did NCredibles for $100. So, we were the more cost effective headphone. While Beats by Dre was making all the noise, we were quietly making noise in Walmarts and the Radio Shacks for selling an affordable product that was pretty much the same product, except for we made ours affordable. So, just so that alone, that was just in consumer electronics.”

Cannon grew up in San Diego but became popular in North Carolina, where his father a minister, let him speak to the congregation. “I had the ability to get in front of people, but it wasn’t about becoming a star,” Cannon recalled, according to Crains New York.

The entertainer previously had gigs like hosting America’s Got Talent and a syndicated top-40 radio countdown show, and programming Nickelodeon’s TeenNick network.