What Was Jimmy Buffett's Net Worth?
Jimmy Buffett was an American singer-songwriter, author, actor, and businessman who had a net worth of $1 billion at the time of his death. Unfortunately, Jimmy died on September 2, 2023, at the age of 76.
Jimmy Buffett earned a fortune embodying the "island escapism" lifestyle. He was perhaps best known for the hit songs "Margaritaville" and "Cheeseburger in Paradise," both of which became anthems for those looking to escape the daily grind. Buffett's musical style was a unique blend of country, rock, folk, and pop, infused with coastal and tropical lyrical themes.
Starting his career in the late 1960s, Buffett initially struggled to make a significant impact in the music industry. However, with the release of albums like 1977's "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes," which featured "Margaritaville," he cemented his status as a mainstream artist. He would go on to release more than 30 albums, and his concerts were often sold-out events featuring devoted fans, known as "Parrotheads," dressed in tropical attire.
Beyond music, Jimmy built a business empire embodying the very lifestyle he sang about. This empire, which made him a billionaire, included restaurants, hotels, and even a line of merchandise. In typical years, Buffett earned $50-100 million from his musical and business ventures. As of this writing, there are dozens of Margaritaville locations around the world. There are restaurants, casinos, hotels, and vacation clubs. There are also dozens of retail outlets. The Margaritaville empire is owned by Margaritaville Holdings LLC, which is itself a subsidiary of Cheesburger Holding Company, LLC.
Rick Diamond/Getty Images
Early Life
James William Buffett was born on Christmas Day in 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi. He spent his childhood in the cities of Mobile and Fairhope, Alabama. He attended grade school at St. Ignatius School, where he played the trombone. Jimmy first enrolled at Auburn University for college before continuing his education at Pearl River Community College at the University of Southern Mississippi, where he received a bachelor's degree in history in 1969. Following graduation from college, he worked as a "Billboard" magazine correspondent in Nashville.
Music Career
Buffett's musical career began in Nashville, Tennessee, during the 1960s. He recorded his first album in 1970, the country-tinged folk-rock number "Down to Earth." Jimmy, who had been frequently found busking for tourists in New Orleans at the time, was soon taken by music singer Jerry Jeff Walker on a busking expedition to Key West in November 1971. This prompted Buffett to move to Key West and establish the easy-going beach-bum persona for which he is known. There, he combined both folk and country music with coastal lyrical themes that produced a sound commonly known as the "Gulf and Western" sound. Thanks to his instant party hits, he gained a loyal following. Before 2003, songs played at every Buffett show were known as the "Big 8," including the song "Margaritaville," which helped him break into the mainstream. Other songs that were part of the "Big 8" include "Come Monday," "Fins," "Volcano," "A Pirate Looks at Forty," "Cheeseburger in Paradise," "Why Don't We Get Drunk," and "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes." With his 30+ album releases, eight of which are Gold and nine Platinum or Multiplatinum, and around 40 live tours to date, he remained faithful to his well-established persona known as the easy-going beach bum guy. He also enjoyed a dedicated fanbase nicknamed "Parrotheads."
During a performance in Nashville in April 2023, Buffett announced that he recorded an album titled "Equal Strain on All Parts" which was posthumously released in November of that year.
During a Nevada Gaming Control Board hearing in 2012, Jimmy was asked about "Margaritaville,"
"When you wrote that song, did you have any idea what it would become?"
Buffett responded:
"It's been a pretty good song. No, it was written in five minutes about a hot day in Austin, Texas, with a margarita and a beautiful woman. I finished it in Key West. I had no idea."
Writing Career
Buffett was a successful writer, having written three #1 bestsellers. His first book, "Tales from Margaritaville" (1989), is a collection of short stories. His second book was the novel "Where Is Joe Merchant?" (1992). These two books both spent over seven months on "The New York Times Best Seller" fiction list. His memoir "A Pirate Looks at Fifty" (1998) debuted at #1 on "The New York Times" Best Seller nonfiction list. He released several other novels, including "A Salty Piece of Land" (2004) and "Swine Not?" (2008). Buffett stated that he planned to release his autobiography around the age of 86 (2032).
Additionally, Jimmy co-wrote two children's books with his eldest daughter Savannah Jane Buffet: "The Jolly Mon" and "Trouble Dolls."
(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Margaritaville and Business Empire
In 1997, Buffett collaborated with novelist Herman Wouk to create a musical based on Wouk's novel "Don't Stop the Carnival." It ran for six weeks in Miami, and Jimmy released an album of songs from the musical in 1998. A new musical, "Escape to Margaritaville," opened in May 2017 at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, running until July of that year. It went on to perform limited runs in cities like New Orleans, Houston, and Chicago. The musical uses Buffett's classic songs, some of which were rewritten in order to better fit into the story, and features a book by Greg Garcia and Mike O'Malley. The show eventually opened on Broadway in March 2018, directed by Christopher Ashley. It ran until that July, with a total of 29 previews and 124 regular performances.
Buffett was involved in two restaurant chains named after two of his hit songs, "Cheeseburger in Paradise" and "Margaritaville." Furthermore, he was the owner of the Margaritaville Cafe restaurant chain and co-developer of the Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant concept with OSI Restaurant Partners (parent of Outback Steakhouse), which operates the chain under a licensing agreement with Buffett. Jimmy also licensed a series of products under the "Margaritaville" name, including Margaritaville Tequila, Margaritaville Footwear, and Margaritaville Foods, which produces products like chips, salsa, guacamole, shrimp and chicken.
Under the Margaritaville Brewing label, Buffett partnered with the Anheuser-Busch brewing company in 2006 to launch LandShark Lager. He also opened the Margaritaville Casino at the Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in May 2013. Other real estate ventures he made included Latitude Margaritaville, a $1 billion retirement village in Daytona Beach, Florida. It was a joint venture between Minto Communities and Buffett's Margaritaville Holdings. As of March 2018, 250 of the planned 400 lots had been sold, with home prices ranging between the low $200,000s to the mid-$300,000s.
Additionally, Buffett launched Margaritaville Records in 1993, distributed through MCA Records. After his deal with MCA ended following the release of his album "Christmas Island" in 1996, Margaritaville Records partnered with Island Records for a two-record deal. He later partnered with RCA Records for distribution in 2005 and 2006.
Rick Diamond/Getty Images
Personal Life and Death
Buffett married Margie Washichek in 1969. They divorced in 1971. With his second wife, Jane Slagsvol, he had two daughters and an adopted son. Buffett and Slagsvol separated in the early 1980s but reunited in 1991. They resided in Sag Harbor, New York, and West Palm Beach, Florida. Jimmy also owned a home in Saint Barts in the Caribbean. Buffett started the charity Save the Manatee, the world's leading manatee protection organization, in 1981 along with former Florida governor Bob Graham.
Unfortunately, Jimmy Buffett died of an aggressive form of skin cancer called Merkel cell carcinoma on September 2, 2023. He was 76.
Real Estate
At the time of his death, Jimmy owned a number of impressive mansions around the country. For example, he owned a mansion in Beverly Hills, California that he bought in 2014 for $8.25 million. He also owned a mansion in the Hamptons town of Sag Harbor, NY, which he purchased in 2016 for $6.5 million. He died at this mansion in 2023. Down in Florida he owned several properties. At the time of his death he owned at least three homes in Florida. He previously owned two mansions in Palm Beach, one he sold in 2020 for $7 million and another he sold in 2010 for $18.5 million. In July 2024, Jimmy's heirs listed a home in Palm Beach for $7.25 million. He bought this property in 2002 for $802,000.
