Johnny Wright (born August 17, 1960) is an American

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

and

media proprietor A media proprietor, also called a media executive, media mogul, media tycoon, or press baron is an entrepreneur who controls any means of public or commercial mass media, through the personal ownership or holding of a dominant position within a ...

. He has managed groups including

New Kids on the Block New Kids on the Block (also initialized as NKOTB) is an American boy band from Dorchester, Massachusetts. The band consists of brothers Jonathan and Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood. New Kids on the Block had ...

, the

Backstreet Boys Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson (musician), Kevin Richardson. The band formed in 1993 in Orlando, Flori ...

, *NSYNC, the

Jonas Brothers The Jonas Brothers () are an American pop rock band formed in 2005 comprising brothers Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey, the Jonas Brothers moved to Little Falls, New Jersey, in 2005, where they wrote thei ...

, Menudo, Triple Image, and solo acts such as

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

Stevie Brock Stephen Ray Brock (born October 23, 1990) is an American pop singer. A native of Dayton, Ohio, he was signed to WIRE Records in 2002, releasing his Stevie Brock (album), eponymous debut album in 2003. Since then, Brock has been featured on Rad ...

, and

Ciara Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. She was discovered by record producer Jazze Pha in the early 2000s, and rose to prominence with her debut studio album, ''Goodies ...

. In 2022, he formed the boy band NoLonelyHearts.

Early life

Wright was born in

Hyannis, Massachusetts Hyannis is the largest of the seven villages in the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States. It is the commercial and transportation hub of Cape Cod and was designated an urban area at the 1990 census. Because of this, many refer to Hya ...

and grew up on

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

. While working in radio, he befriended

Maurice Starr Larry Curtis Johnson (born November 19, 1953), better known by his stage name Maurice Starr, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his production work for boy bands New Edition and New Kids on the Block. H ...

, who went on to discover

New Edition New Edition is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B/Pop music, pop group from the Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson ...

. In 1988, when Starr was managing group

, Starr hired Wright as a driver for the band, and Wright became the group's road manager for four years.

Career

In the early 1990s, Wright relocated to

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

and began working as a manager for the

, a vocal group put together by

Lou Pearlman Louis Jay Pearlman (June 19, 1954 – August 19, 2016) was an American music manager and scam artist. He was the person behind many successful 1990s boy bands, having formed and funded the Backstreet Boys. After their massive success, he then dev ...

. To help break the group, Wright decided the Boys should first develop their act in continental Europe before making an American debut. The band achieved success in

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

-friendly Europe, eventually breaking through internationally and selling 30 million copies worldwide of their second album ''

''. While the Backstreet Boys were establishing themselves in Europe, Pearlman signed another vocal group gaining buzz in Orlando,

NSYNC NSYNC ( ; also stylized as *NSYNC or N Sync) was an American vocal group and pop boy band formed by Chris Kirkpatrick in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich. The group consists of Kirkpatrick, JC Chasez, ...

, at Wright's suggestion. NSYNC, duplicating Wright's European strategy, would go on to match Backstreet Boys' success with their debut record reaching the number 2 position on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. In September 1998, the Backstreet Boys parted ways with Wright, but later re-signed with him in 2004. Wright managed

from 1998 to 2003. He became the manager for

's solo career in 2002. During 2000, Wright's management roster included eleven acts.

2000–2010

In 2003, he appeared as a judge on the NBC talent/reality show, '' Fame'', hosted by one of his own managed talents,

Joey Fatone Joseph Anthony Fatone Jr. (born January 28, 1977) is an American singer, dancer, actor, and television host. He is best known as a member of the boy band NSYNC, in which he sang baritone. The band has sold over 70 million records, becoming one ...

of *NSYNC. In 2004, Wright teamed up with

Sean "Diddy" Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, Combs worked as a ...

for the third season of ''

Making the Band ''Making the Band'' is an ABC/MTV reality television series that exists in separate iterations, each focusing on a specific music act. It spawned musical acts O-Town, Da Band, Danity Kane, Day26, and Donnie Klang. Except for the first itera ...

''. After an unsuccessful first attempt, band

Danity Kane Danity Kane is an American music group whose most recent line-up consisted of Aubrey O'Day, Dawn Richard, and Shannon Bex. The group originally had five members, but D. Woods, Wanita "D. Woods" Woodgett left the group in 2008, and Aundrea Fimbre ...

was finally chosen in 2005. Wright served as the group's (which included singer

Shannon Bex Shannon Rae Bex (born March 22, 1980) is an American singer, dancer, and reality show personality. She was also a member of girl group Danity Kane. Early life Bex was born in Gresham, Oregon, to parents Pamela and Marshall. She has an older b ...

, whom he met on ''Fame'') manager. In 2008, he quit managing Danity Kane via text message. In 2007, Wright was selected to be the manager of the new version of the Latino boy band Menudo. The new group would be a fusion of urban, pop and rock music in English and Spanish under the label of

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

and

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

. Several auditions were held in different cities such as

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, among others. In New York, 15 youngsters were selected from 25 contestants during a one-week mini-competition: José Monti Montañez,

JC Gonzalez Juan Camilo Gonzalez (born March 8, 1990) is a Colombian actor and singer-songwriter. His career began in 2009, when he participated in television commercials and advertisements in Texas. Gonzalez was also a candidate on ''Making Menudo'', an MTV ...

, Carlos Pena, Jr., Anthony, Carlos Olivero, Chris Moy, Dennis, Eric, Hansel, Henry, Jorge Jorge, Jorge Negron, José Bordonada, José Monti Montañez, Thomas and Trevor. Wright, along with choreographer Anibal Marrero and voice coach David Coury, met with the 15 semifinalists in

South Beach South Beach, also nicknamed colloquially as SoBe, is a Neighborhoods of Miami Beach, Florida, neighborhood in Miami Beach, Florida. It is located east of Miami between Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The area encompasses Miami Beach south ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

to continue the band's development, a process that was documented through a reality show on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

called ''Making Menudo''. In 2009, Wright announced the formation of a new boy band group, which was ultimately named

One Call One Call was a boy band featuring Justin "JJ" Thorne, Anthony "AG" Gamlieli, Chris Moy, and Jose Bordonada. Johnny Wright (music manager), Johnny Wright—a music executive who has managed successful groups such as Backstreet Boys, 'NSync, and ...

. The group consisted of two former members of Menudo, Chris Moy and José Bordonada Collazo; former member of NLT, Justin Thorne; and newcomer Anthony Gamlieli.

2011–2012

Wright was also the manager of

Aubrey O'Day Aubrey Morgan O'Day (born February 11, 1984) is an American singer and reality television personality who has been a member of the girl group Danity Kane. Following discord among Danity Kane and with her mentor at the time, P. Diddy, O'Day was f ...

of Danity Kane and was featured on the

Oxygen Oxygen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group (periodic table), group in the periodic table, a highly reactivity (chemistry), reactive nonmetal (chemistry), non ...

docu-reality series '' All About Aubrey''. In 2011, Wright partnered with AT&T and Cambio to create a new web-reality show series called ''On the Spot: Johnny Wright's Quest to Form the Next Supergroup''.

Web reality series: ''On the Spot'' (2011)

Wright joined the web reality series ''On the Spot'' on the Cambio website in 2011. The show documented the talent community's search of participants all over the world to form the next supergroup. The competition was narrowed to 20 participants, who were then placed in a series of challenges that tested each contestant's artistic prowess, business savvy, and passion. The winners of the competition would be flown to LA to participate in Wright's famous “Boot Camp”, an intense workshop of rehearsals, dance choreography, vocal lessons, and media training.

Web series: ''Take the Stage'' (2012)

In 2012, Wright starred in the YOBI.tv singing competition web series '' Take The Stage''. Along with

Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), better known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won two Grammy Awards from 19 nomi ...

and a number of other music and media industry professionals, Wright mentored and challenged contestants Katelyn, Mykell, Brooklynn, Marquisa, Tyler, Gabrielle, Lyric, Ashlynn, and Luke, to see who had what it took to be the next breakout star. The winner of ''Take The Stage'' won $20,000 and a management contract with Wright Entertainment Group and YOBI.tv. In 2012, Wright took on a new Orlando-based group, known as 89, and helped them launch their first single, "Give Me Some More (GMSM)", and its accompanying music video. During this year, he also signed British singer-songwriter Luke Potter.

2013–present

In August 2014 Wright began to handle the career of Indonesian singer

Agnez Mo Agnes Monika (born 1 July 1986), known professionally as AGNEZ MO (stylized in all caps), is an Indonesian singer, songwriter, and actress. Born and raised in Jakarta, she was initially known as a child artist. At the age of six, she began re ...

to help her break the US music market. In early 2015, Johnny Wright managed

Dumblonde Dumblonde (stylized dumblonde) was an American alternative dance pop duo consisting of Danity Kane members Shannon Bex and Aubrey O'Day. History 2014–2016: Danity Kane split, formation of Dumblonde and debut album On August 4, 2014, whil ...

, the new music duo consisting of former Danity Kane members Aubrey O' Day and Shannon Bex. Wright is currently president/CEO of the Wright Entertainment Group (WEG). In 2015, he was included in the annual ''Billboard'' Power 100 list as No. 83. The Wright Entertainment Group (WEG) management roster includes Justin Timberlake,

98 Degrees 98 Degrees (stylized as 98°) is an American vocal group consisting of brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, Jeff Timmons, and Justin Jeffre. Their first Christmas album '' This Christmas'' has sold over two million copies and is widely recognized ...

AJ McLean Alexander James McLean (born January 9, 1978) is an American singer. He is a founding member of the pop vocal group Backstreet Boys. Early life McLean was born on January 9, 1978, in West Palm Beach, Florida, to Denise (née Fernandez, now ...

Asher Angel Asher Dov Angel (born September 6, 2002) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor in the film '' Jolene'' (2008), starring Jessica Chastain. He is known for his roles as Jonah Beck in the Disney Channel series ''Andi Mack'' (2 ...

, and

Incubus An Incubus () is a demon, male demon in human form in folklore that seeks to have Sexuality in Christian demonology, sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. Parallels exist in many c ...

Personal life

Wright was previously married to Donna Wright. From 2001 to 2016, Wright was married to Erika Schwarz, a sports agent, attorney and first runner-up for the 1997 Miss America pageant.

References

External links

*
WEG Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Johnny Living people 1960 births Businesspeople from Massachusetts American music promoters American talent agents NSYNC People from Hyannis, Massachusetts Backstreet Boys American music managers New Kids on the Block Jonas Brothers