Power fans have literally watched Michael Rainey Jr. grow up on the hit crime series since its debut on Starz in June 2014. Rainey plays Tariq St. Patrick, the son of drug kingpin “Ghost” who inevitably follows in his infamous father’s footsteps in the show’s spin-off series Power Book II: Ghost, which is currently in its second season. The 50 Cent produced TV drama was just given the greenlight for a third season on Dec. 7. Rainey took to Instagram to announce the excting news.

“Knew this for like 4 months but yessssir. It’s up. Cleared for s3, Blessings,”  the 21-year-old actor wrote.

With season 2 of Power Book underway, let’s take a closer look into who Michael Rainey Jr. is beyond his seminal role as Tariq St. Patrick.

Early Life

Michael Rainey Jr. was born on Sept. 22, 2000 in Louisville, Kentucky shortly before moving to Staten Island, New York with his parents Michael Rainey Sr. and Shauna Small. Rainey is of half Jamaican descent.

Movies

Before gracing TV screens in the Power franchise, the young star made appearances in a number of films including 2010s Un Altro Mondo, an Italian drama, where the then 10-year-old made his acting debut as “Charlie,” the estranged half brother of a rich white party addict. Rainey went on to star in 2012’s LUV alongside Common and even had a reocurring role on Netflix’s hilarious jail drama Orange Is The New Black before achieveing stardom on Power. 

Net Worth 

It’s unclear as to what Rainey has raked in with his long time reoccuring role on the Power franchise, but Express reported that many of the show’s leading stars could have potentially earned anywhere between $150,000 to $1,000,000 per episode for a show. Showbiz Cheatsheet noted that in 2014, Rainey was earning $20,000 per episode. In 2018, his salary increased to $45,000. Rainey could be earning way more now given his tenure with the series.

50 Cent Helped Michael Rainey Jr. Prepare For His Role In Power Book

According to Power creator Courtney A. Kemp, 50 cent who helped executive produce the series since its inception, has been working closely with Rainey as a mentor to help him develop his character. “He’s stepped up on every level and I’m really thrilled with him,”  Kemp told Entertainment Weekly. “50 has done such a great job supporting him. They worked together extensively during Power, so 50 really knows him well and has done such a great job of supporting him and preparing him for this.”

During an interview with Insider back in December 2020 Rainey said it was a bit challenging to switch gears into his new leading role on Power Book without loosing Tariq’s authenticism.

“It’s the same character, but a way different role,” he explained. “So I was just really reading my scripts, trying to get into that space of Tariq becoming the man of the house now; the man of the show; the man of the new ‘Power’ universe. To take on that type of responsibility, you need confidence. So I feel like I just had to just get the confidence.” The actor, who has been with the series since he was 13, said he hoped to be an inspiration to aspiring young Black actors.

“This is one of the only shows with a young Black man leading, so I feel like right now that’s a blessing and I can’t ask for anything more than to be in that position,” he added. “This is one of the best positions you can be in because when you’re leading a show it’s not just about the show, it’s about off of the show too because you’re an inspiration to the kids that are younger, so I always want to be an inspiration to those that watch me and watch what I do.”