Zohran Mamdani, who put his rapping days on hold, has seen a modest financial upswing thanks to his 2025 mayoral campaign.
Delving into Mamdani’s tax records reveals that while his musical pursuits haven’t propelled him into a lucrative sphere, they’ve certainly augmented his earnings. Known in the music world as Mr. Cardamom, Mamdani collected $2,700 in royalties during the year—a figure that, while not substantial, represents a doubling of his 2024 earnings, as confirmed by the tax documents he made public on Thursday.
The mayor managed to garner $1,643 from listeners in the United States, with an additional $1,075 coming from international streams, according to his financial disclosures.
During 2025, approximately 550,000 people tuned into his music globally, a significant rise from the 215,000 streams recorded in the previous year, according to estimates based on Spotify’s revenue distribution.
Back in 2024, his total royalties amounted to $1,267, supplementing his consistent state Assemblyman salary of $131,000, which remained unchanged year over year.
In 2024, he made $1,267 in total royalties, to go along with his state Assemblyman salary that remained at $131,000 year to year.
The bump in money for Mamdani came as he became a household name after he easily defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and a slew of other Democrats in a primary last June.
His ascension continued as he won the general election in November and became one of the most recognizable politicians nationwide.
Mamdani traded in his rap career for politics when he launched his a successful state Assembly run in 2019. During his unremarkable stint as a rapper, he even appeared in a music video for his song “Nani,” where he showed up in a halal cart, shirtless except an apron.
“You know I’ll be forever spicy but I’m taking a break from being a spice to answer the question of what happens when a B-list rapper runs for office,” his alter-ego Mr. Cardamom tweeted in November 2019.
While the Democratic Socialists of America comrade earned six-figures, his wife, Rama Duwaji, failed to even pull in more than four-figures for her often touted artist career, the docs show.
She reported making $8,800 in 2025, according to the jointly filed tax return.
“$140,000 a year is more than enough for a socialist couple living in a rent stabilized apartment in Astoria,” political consultant Ken Frydman said in reference to the pair’s former pad in Queens.
“A $258,750 mayoral salary and rent-free mansion is way too much for a socialist couple living in Manhattan,” the operative quipped about Mamdani’s new salary and home as mayor.
The newly married couple were able to cash in on President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill — boosting their standard deduction from $29,000 to $31,500 — giving them a refund of $1,300.
