Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Oprah made it to Forbes list of powerful women

Singers Lady Gaga and Beyonce Knowles made it to the Forbes list of powerful women, at seventh and ninth places respectively, along with US talkshow host Ellen Degeneres, who took tenth place.

“Our assessment is based less on traditional titles and roles and more on creative influence and entrepreneurship.” In compiling this year’s list, the magazine said it opted to “look up and out into the broader culture.”

Meanwhile, the most powerful woman according to Forbes this year is US First Lady Michelle Obama who shot up 40 places to claim the top spot, ending German leader Angela Merkel’s four-year reign at the top of the magazine’s list.

Forbes said the First Lady had proved “a true change-maker since taking lodge in the White House in 2008,” citing her “Let’s Move!” campaign aimed at reducing childhood obesity.

“The first African-American in the post, she’s changed the face of the office (literally), and with consistently high approval ratings, she’s given a new generation of girls and women around the world a role model,” the magazine said.

Merkel was relegated to fourth place behind Kraft Foods CEO Irene Rosenfeld and talkshow host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey while Obama’s former rival and now secretary of state Hillary Clinton, who moved up from 36th place last year to crack the top 10, taking fifth place.

At number six was Indra Nooyi, PepsiCo’s chief executive, who fell three places from last year’s rankings and chief executive of WestPac Gail Kelly came in at number eight this year.