Summary
- Alanis Morissette rose to fame with her hit album Jagged Little Pill in 1995, selling millions of copies worldwide.
- Despite facing financial setbacks, Morissette sued her ex-manager and won back millions in stolen earnings.
- With 75 million albums sold over her career, Morissette is still touring and teasing a new album set to increase her $60 million net worth.
When you think of Alanis Morissette, what songs come to mind? If you’re a 90s kid, you probably remember Hang in My Pocket, You Oughta Know, and Ironic. These three hits were all from the same 1995 album, Jagged Little Pill, which brought in huge sales and transformed the singer, songwriter, and mom into a huge star.
If you followed Morissette’s career into the 2000s and 2010s, however, you’re probably thinking of her latest release and ninth studio album, Such Pretty Forks in the Road. While her later albums have not garnered the worldwide attention that Jagged Little Pill received, Morissette has been able to build her net worth to $60 million with royalties, tours, frequent album releases, and by winning a lawsuit against her former manager.
Updated May 2024: In the nearly 30 years since "Jagged Little Pill" was released, Alanis Morissette is continuing to tour today. With dates lined up through the end of summer, Morissette is continuing to build her net worth, which has gone up dramatically in the last several years from $45 million to $60 million. Additionally, Morissette has teased a new album coming out in 2024. If this is the case, she will continue to grow her net worth even higher.
The Beginning of Alanis Morissette’s Career
Alanis Morissette's career began in 1987 with the release of Fate Stay With Me
Morissette's musical career began in 1987 when she recorded her first-ever demo, Fate Stay With Me, in Toronto, Canada. The demo was financed in part by money she earned from an acting gig on You Can’t Do That on Television, which aired on Nickelodeon.
That fateful demo helped Morissette land a publishing deal with MCA Records in Canada. In 1991, her first album, Alanis, made its debut. Though Alanis was available only in Canada and featured dance-pop tracks, something that doesn't fit with Morissette’s character, the album helped establish Morissette as a talented artist. Her second album, Now This is Time, earned her a Juno Award for Most Promising Female Artist in 1992.
Though the buzz in Canada was building about this new, talented, female artist, it wasn’t enough attention to make Morissette popular in the U.S. That's when Morissette decided to move to L.A. at 24 years old.
This move kickstarted Morissette’s career. She soon met producer and songwriter Glen Ballard who helped her craft her most famous album to date: Jagged Little Pill. When Ballard and Morissette sent around their demos from the album, the rest was history. Maverick Records, owned by Madonna’s Warner Bros., signed Morissette for a brand-new record deal.
Alanis Morissette Increased Her Sales Dramatically in the 90s
Alanis Morissette made a fortune with the release of her album Jagged Little Pill in 1995
The album Jagged Little Pill debuted in June 1995 and launched Morissette into American stardom. Teens across the U.S. jammed to edgy songs like You Oughta Know, All I Really Want, Hand in My Pocket, and Ironic. By 1998, Morissette had sold nearly 28 million copies of the album worldwide and received her four Grammys. Jagged Little Pill now has sales of over 33 million worldwide and is still considered one of the best-selling albums of all time.
By the time Morissette released her fourth album, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, in 1998, she was already a global sensation. Even though her fourth album didn’t do nearly as well with 3 million copies sold, her climb to stardom in the 90s sent her earnings through the roof.
Alanis Morissette Gained Back Stolen Earnings After Suing Her Ex-Manager
Alanis Morissette's manager stole $7.2 million from her
Much later in 2017, business manager Jonathan Todd Schwartz was accused of stealing $7.2 million from several celebrities, including Morissette. Schwartz pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $5 million from Morissette between 2010 and 2014. Morissette alleged that she did not know about the crime until she switched business managers and discovered that millions of dollars were missing from her earnings.
Later that year, Schwartz was sentenced to six years in federal prison. He was also ordered to pay over $8.5 million in restitution.
Alanis Morissette Became the Queen of Alt-Rock Angst
Alanis Morissette was nicknamed the "undisputed queen of alt-rock angst"
According to Rolling Stone, Morissette became the "undisputed queen of alt-rock angst” in 1995 when she released Jagged Little Pill. Indeed, she maintained that image over 20 years later even as her musical style shifted slightly in her later albums.
In 1999, for example, she drew criticism for playing “God” in Dogma, a Kevin Smith comedy. And in 2000, she appeared nude in her music video Thank U which caused a stir in the industry. Still, Thank U earned a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
Morissette also made headlines in 2004 when she hosted the Juno Awards in a bathrobe and a flesh-colored bodysuit underneath. The outfit drew attention to the issue of censorship by referencing a Janet Jackson incident, in which Jackson accidentally flashed her breast at a Super Bowl halftime performance.
Throughout her career, Morissette has managed to maintain relevancy and prove herself as a multitalented singer and songwriter, all while raising eyebrows. She sold approximately 60 million albums at the height of her career in the 1990s. She has also sold 75 million albums over the course of her career. In doing so, she has been able to increase her net worth to $60 million.
