From a public relations standpoint, Justin Bieber is having a terrible year. Search for news about the young singer and you’ll find that he recently agreed to pay $80,000 to a former neighbor after egging his house; he’s almost done with his anger management classes; and he appears to have punched a paparazzo in Paris.

But from a financial point of view, Bieber is still going strong. His fans follow him religiously on Twitter TWTR -0.03%, where he has 56.6 million followers, and his live shows sell out in minutes. Bieber tops our list of the Highest-Earning Celebrities Under 30 with an estimated $80 million over the 12-month span we evaluated, mostly thanks to the tail end of his world tour. With a new album reportedly in the works, the 20-year-old star has a chance to let his music speak louder than his latest shenanigans. Bieber recently released 15 seconds each of 11 songs using his Instagram account but there’s no solid word on when the album will be finished.

Musicians dominate our annual list of the youngest celebrity money makers, filling nine of the top 10 positions. The list is based on research for our annual Celebrity 100 rundown, which looks at entertainment-related earnings between June 2013 and June 2014. The Celebrity 100 is based on earnings and metrics that quantify fame; on that list, Bieber ranked 33rd. Here, we’re just looking at earnings and the under-30 crowd. Our estimates are based on entertainment-related income and we do not deduct for taxes, management fees or the other costs of being a celebrity.

Ranking second is a group of young men who, unlike Bieber, have yet to tarnish their reputations. One Direction (average age, 21) earned an estimated $75 million between June 2013 and June 2014. Formed from a group of contestants on the British version of The X Factor, One Direction’s latest album, Midnight  Memories, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and the song “Story Of My Life” went multi-platinum.

(Forbes)