For the past nine years, Michael Rainey Jr. has played Tariq St. Patrick on Power and the spinoff series Power Book II: Ghost. His portrayal of the rebellious teenager consistently garners reactions from viewers.
Prior to becoming a pillar in the Power universe, Rainey appeared alongside rapper/actor Lonnie “Common” Lynn in the 2012 film LUV. He also acted in other movies such as 2013’s The Butler and 2016’s Barbershop: The Next Cut.
Michael Rainey Jr. earned a nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Youth at the 49th NAACP Image Awards in 2018. Plus, the Louisville-born actor also received a YoungStars Award nomination at the following year’s BET Awards.
The Twenty Two Entertainment co-founder came up short at both the NAACP Image Awards and BET Awards at the time. During a recent cover story article with CassiusLife.com, Rainey addressed whether he feels overlooked when it comes to award recognition.
Michael Rainey Jr. Explains Not Concentrating On Winning Awards
“I feel like everyone does what they do for a different reason. I feel like I’m in this for just the enjoyment. I like doing what I do,” stated Rainey. He continued, “I like playing the role of Tariq. I love coming to the set and being with the cast and the crew every day. So that’s one part of it that I just look at and be like, ‘No, I get to do this every day.'”
The 22-year-old Hollywood veteran added, “So I enjoy that. I don’t really look at it as far as being overlooked. Obviously, I’m not too oblivious to that, but I don’t really let that affect me too much, and I just let the work do what it does.”
Hip Hop Legend 50 Cent Gave The Young Actor Some Advice
Michael Rainey Jr. went on to quote Power franchise executive producer Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. The G-Unit Films and Television founder told Rainey that awards cannot be taken to the bank so they don’t matter.
“The first time [50 Cent] told me that, I was like, I could never really care or go too crazy about not being seen for some of these awards,” said Rainey. “I definitely just do it for my enjoyment. So whatever followers, whatever comes with it, comes with it, but if it doesn’t come with it, it is what it is.”
Power Book II: Ghost will return for a third season on the Starz network beginning Friday, March 17. In addition to Michael Rainey Jr., the cast includes Mary J. Blige, Cliff “Method Man” Smith, Shane Johnson, Gianni Paolo, Larenz Tate, Berto Colon, and Woody McClain.