EXCLUSIVE: Actors Gianni Paolo and Michael Rainey Jr., who star together in the Starz series Power Book II: Ghost, have launched Twenty Two Entertainment which will produce films, TV series, and multimedia ventures.
Twenty Two Entertainment is fully funded by Artists For Artists, the company launched in December by Emmy-winning co-founder SNL castmember Kenan Thompson and co-founder & CEO John Ryan Jr. (former COO of FilmEngine, producer of Bill & Ted Face the Music and Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr.).
Artists for Artists (AFA) is a full service 360 incubator for artists to create and produce their own content, as a full service production company, with a commerce division, and bespoke management representation. Artists For Artists (AFA) builds companies with artists and brands that the artists and brands themselves co-own, as a home for artists to own their own content and commerce, while partnering with global distributors.
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The first project from Twenty Two Entertainment is the podcast, The Crew Has It, which will launch in April across YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Paolo and Rainey Jr. will discuss the Power universe and the entertainment industry, and interview cast and filmmakers from the Starz series as well as hip hop, R&B artists and actors.
Said Ryan Jr, “Over the last couple of years, I’ve watched Gianni and Michael transition from actors to brands. They have their finger on the pulse of entertainment and pop culture. Kenan and I built Artists For Artists to support hard-working creators like Gianni and Michael, and we look forward to sharing their dynamic slate of entertainment.”
Paolo and Rainey Jr. said “We are excited to partner with John and Kenan at AFA. They are big supporters of artists, and they allow artists to have control and ownership of their work, which is important in this new multimedia wave of the industry.”
Paolo is repped by ICM, MGMT and Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown and Passman. Rainey is repped by ICM and Untitled Entertainment. Artists For Artists is represented by Paradigm. Thompson is represented by UTA and Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka, Finkelstein & Lezcano. Ryan Jr. is represented by Paradigm.
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