JoJo Ryder

JoJo was born on July 27, 1982 in the Bronx, New York. He excelled in basketball, however was unsure of exactly what he wanted to do. His refuge had always been film. An escape, and unbeknownst to him, a source of endless inspiration and energy that would draw him to California. Once in California, JoJo became involved in Hollywood whatever way he could. He began as an extra with one line in the television series "Invasion," followed by success in booking a national commercial for Hoover brand vacuums. After this JoJo found more success in this part of the industry when he booked a national commercial for K-Swiss as well as for 7 Up soft drinks. Still, he was evolving and growing. He inked a deal with VH1 to become producer on the hit show Rock of Love. Through a meeting with Ray J at a celebrity basketball game, the two began work quickly on a new reality show, a concept that was still budding at the time. The show, For the Love of Ray J, would go on to become a massive success, making JoJo the youngest person ever to hold the Executive Producer title at twenty-five. Additionally, For the Love of Ray J was the first show to have its own soundtrack, done by Ray J's label Knockout Entertainment. JoJo then switched gears briefly to work on a children's book, "Young JoJo." Subsequently, he joined forces again with Ray J to bring the audiences Brandy and Ray J: A Family Business, which yielded high audience ratings and pulled in a massive number of viewers. Feeling a sense of accomplishment, JoJo set his sights to Hollywood feature films. He became an executive producer at Viacom in 2007. While building his résumé, he joined forces with world champion Sugar Shane Mosley to become his business partner in all aspects of Mosley's empire. JoJo was the key figure in orchestrating the bout between Mosley and Manny Pacquiao, a fight that generated over 1.3 million ppv buys and over $100,000,000. From there, JoJo would parlay his relationships and rapidly growing network to become the president of Kon Live Productions, superstar Akon's film production company. During his tenure with Kon Live Productions, JoJo and Akon served as Executive Producers on the world-renowned documentary "Incorruptible." JoJo would hold this position simultaneously with his other projects from September 2013 to January 2016. While at Kon Live, JoJo brought Akon into three films and has an untitled feature film in the works starring Larenz Tate and Akon. His first feature film project as Executive Producer was American Heist, starring Adrien Brody and Hayden Christensen, and Jordana Brewster. From a budget of $10,000,000 the film was able to generate more than $110,000,000 world-wide. Most recently, JoJo will be travelling to South Africa for his role as Lead Creative Producer on the upcoming Uma Thurman film, "Girl Soldier." JoJo Ryder was brought on as Lead Creative Executive Producer on the upcoming thriller, Summerhouse.