The Scorpion Kings — the hugely popular Amapiano partnership of Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa — have once again demonstrated the enormous commercial power of South Africa's Amapiano movement with their massive show at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
Following the concert, one question has naturally emerged among fans and industry observers:
How much money did the Scorpion Kings actually make from the show?
The short answer is that there is no publicly verified figure yet showing exactly how much Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa personally earned from the concert.
However, ticket prices, the size of the venue and the reported attendance give us enough information to understand the potential scale of the event.
A Massive Night at FNB Stadium
FNB Stadium is one of the biggest entertainment venues in South Africa, and staging a concert there is a major commercial undertaking.
For the Scorpion Kings, performing at a venue of this size represents more than just another night on the Amapiano calendar. It demonstrates how far the genre has travelled — from South African townships and clubs to some of the country's biggest stadiums.
The concert brought together fans for a large-scale celebration of the Scorpion Kings brand, with Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa at the centre of the event.
With tens of thousands of people potentially inside the stadium, the financial numbers quickly become significant.
So How Much Could the Concert Have Generated?
The important distinction here is between revenue generated by the concert and money earned by the artists.
Those are two very different numbers.
If approximately 70,000 people attended and the average amount paid for a ticket worked out to around R800, ticket revenue would be approximately:
70,000 × R800 = R56 million
If the average ticket value were closer to R1,000, the calculation becomes:
70,000 × R1,000 = R70 million
And if attendance reached approximately 80,000 people, the figures could look like this:
80,000 × R800 = R64 million
or:
80,000 × R1,000 = R80 million
That means a large stadium concert of this scale could potentially generate somewhere in the region of R56 million to R80 million in gross ticket sales, depending on the final attendance and the actual distribution of ticket categories.
But it is important not to mistake this figure for the Scorpion Kings' personal income.
Gross Revenue Is Not Profit
This is where discussions about concert earnings often become misleading.
Imagine, for example, that a concert generated R70 million in ticket sales.
That does not mean Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa received R70 million.
A stadium concert involves a huge number of expenses.
The promoter may have to pay for:
The stadium and venue-related costs
Stage construction
Sound equipment
Lighting
Screens and visual production
Security
Medical services
Event staff
Marketing and advertising
Ticketing costs
Insurance
Transportation
Accommodation
Supporting artists
DJs and performers
Technical crews
Production management
Hospitality
Taxes and other statutory costs
There can also be substantial costs associated with bringing a stadium show to the required production standard.
A concert designed for tens of thousands of people is effectively a temporary entertainment business operating for one night.
The Artists' Deal Is the Key Question
The biggest missing piece is the agreement between the artists and the promoter.
There are several ways major artists can be compensated for a concert.
They could receive a fixed performance fee.
They could receive a percentage of revenue.
They could have a guaranteed minimum plus a percentage of certain revenues.
There could also be separate commercial arrangements involving sponsorships, merchandise, VIP packages or other revenue streams.
Unless the contract between the Scorpion Kings and the promoter is publicly disclosed, it is impossible to say with certainty how much Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa personally received.
This is why estimates of their "earnings" should be treated carefully.
What About VIP Tickets?
VIP and hospitality tickets can significantly change the economics of a stadium concert.
A show may have thousands of ordinary tickets sold at relatively affordable prices, while premium packages can cost substantially more.
That creates a situation where the simple calculation of:
attendance × average ordinary ticket price
may underestimate total ticket-related revenue.
For example, suppose an event sells 70,000 tickets, but a portion of those tickets are premium packages costing considerably more than standard admission.
The actual average revenue per attendee could therefore be higher than the advertised entry-level ticket price.
On the other hand, promotional discounts, complimentary tickets, ticketing fees and different pricing categories can make the final calculation more complicated.
That is why the final box-office figure is normally something only the promoter, ticketing company and relevant financial partners can confirm accurately.
Merchandise Could Add Another Revenue Stream
There is also the possibility of merchandise.
A major Scorpion Kings stadium event provides an opportunity to sell branded clothing, memorabilia and other products.
Even a relatively small amount spent per attendee can become significant when tens of thousands of people attend.
For example, if 10,000 fans spent an average of R500 on merchandise, that would represent:
R5 million in merchandise sales.
Again, however, sales are not the same thing as profit.
Merchandise has manufacturing, transportation, staffing and retail costs.
Sponsorships and Commercial Partnerships
Large concerts can also generate money outside ticket sales.
Sponsors may contribute financially or provide products and services in exchange for branding and exposure.
This can include:
Main-event sponsorship
Brand activations
VIP experiences
Advertising
Digital campaigns
Product placements
Media partnerships
These agreements can sometimes be worth substantial amounts, but unless the relevant contracts are publicly disclosed, they should not be included as confirmed income.
Why the Scorpion Kings Brand Matters
There is another important financial consideration: the event is not simply about one night's ticket sales.
The Scorpion Kings have built a major entertainment brand around the partnership between Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa.
A stadium concert can strengthen that brand considerably.
The artists can potentially benefit from increased demand for future performances, streaming exposure, sponsorship opportunities, merchandise sales and international bookings.
In other words, the commercial value of a stadium concert can extend well beyond the money collected at the gates on the night.
Could They Have Made Millions Personally?
It is certainly possible that the artists earned a substantial amount from an event of this scale.
But saying they personally "made R70 million" would be misleading unless there is evidence that they received that amount.
A more realistic way to look at the numbers is to distinguish three stages:
1. Gross event revenue
Money generated through tickets and other event-related income.
2. Event expenses
The costs involved in staging the concert.
3. Artist compensation
The amount agreed between the promoter and the performers.
The third figure is the one people usually mean when they ask how much the Scorpion Kings "made", but it is also the figure we currently cannot establish from ticket prices alone.
A Hypothetical Example
To illustrate the difference, imagine the concert generated R70 million in ticket sales.
Suppose the event then incurred R40 million in combined production, venue, marketing, staffing, security, performers and other expenses.
That would leave R30 million before considering the precise contractual arrangements, taxes and other costs.
The Scorpion Kings might then receive a negotiated artist fee or a share of the remaining proceeds.
But this is only an illustration, not a claim about the actual finances of the FNB Stadium show.
The real numbers could be substantially different.
The Bigger Story Is the Scale of Amapiano
Regardless of the final financial figures, a Scorpion Kings stadium concert illustrates something much bigger about South African music.
Amapiano has developed from a relatively niche sound into one of the country's most commercially powerful musical movements.
Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa have played a major role in that development, both individually and through their Scorpion Kings partnership.
A stadium audience of tens of thousands represents an extraordinary level of demand for a genre that is still relatively young compared with many established global music genres.
The economics of the concert therefore tell only part of the story.
The cultural significance is just as important.
Final Estimate
Based on the possible attendance and ticket-price ranges, a reasonable illustrative estimate for gross ticket revenue could be somewhere around R56 million to R80 million, assuming roughly 70,000–80,000 attendees and an average ticket value of approximately R800–R1,000.
However, that should not be described as the Scorpion Kings' personal earnings.
The actual amount Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa took home would depend on their contractual arrangement with the promoter, event expenses, taxes and other financial factors.
Until the promoter, artists or another authoritative source releases the final financial figures, the exact profit and artist payout remain unknown.
What can be said with much greater confidence is that putting the Scorpion Kings on the FNB Stadium stage represents a major commercial milestone — and potentially one of the biggest live-event opportunities in South African Amapiano.
The final box-office numbers will ultimately tell us just how big the night was financially.
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