Mark Wahlberg: $300 Million Machine
As Mark Wahlberg's new film "Infinite" hits the theatres, we take a look back at his colourful career which started as a rapper on the streets of Boston 🎤
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Happy Monday Everyone!
If you’re looking for some inspiration to get your Monday morning up and running, look no further than the person we are talking about today to motivate you to attack the day 👊🏻
✅Actor
✅Businessman
✅Rapper
✅Producer
✅Restauranteur
✅Fitness Freak
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg, the 50-year-old American actor, dons as many hats as he has siblings 👨👨👦👦
The youngest of 9 brothers growing up in Boston, Massachusetts, Wahlberg went viral last year for posting his insane daily schedule which begins with waking up at 2.30 AM in the morning and working out 🤯👇🏻
But why are we talking about him in a Music newsletter?
Not many know that before becoming the $300 Million worth Hollywood Tycoon that he is today, Wahlberg started out as a small-time rapper by the name of “Marky Mark” in Boston, as a part of a boy band: “New Kids on the Block” along with his brother Donnie Wahlberg.
So how did a small-time rapper known for getting in trouble with the law as a teenager blow up to become one of the highest-paid actors in the world?
This is his story 👇🏻
Born in 1971, in Boston, Massachusetts; Wahlberg’s upbringing was far from ideal. He was the youngest of the 9 brothers, and growing up on the streets pushed him towards a life of violence and substance abuse.
He was addicted to cocaine by the age of 13 and had multiple assault felonies registered under his name by the time he was 17: serving a sentence in prison for attacking a Vietnamese-American man while being high on PCP.
In the 45 days he spent in prison, Wahlberg vowed to rid himself of the violent lifestyle and pursued fitness and music instead.
In 1990, Wahlberg began recording with dancers/rappers Scott Ross, Hector Barros, Anthony Thomas, and Terry Yancey as Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch.
The group hit gold with "Good Vibrations" from their debut album Music for the People.
The record peaked at #1 on Billboard Hot 100 📈 and later got certified as a Platinum Single 💽
Unfortunately, that’s when the stardom started and ended for Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch as their second release, the LP “You Gotta Believe” tanked and could only produce one minor hit.
However, things worked out for Wahlberg, and thanks to the fame he acquired from his rap career as “Marky Mark” and his physique in the “Good Intentions” music video, he landed an advertising job with Calvin Klein.
Soon enough, Hollywood caught the attention of Wahlberg’s charisma 🌟
He was able to score a role in Martin Donovan’s TV film ‘The Substitute’ (1993) and marked his entry into Hollywood.
After his first film, Wahlberg dropped his stage name “Marky Mark” and made his big-screen debut in Penny Marshall's Renaissance Man(1994).
His screen presence in Renaissance Man got him his breakthrough role in Jim Caroll’s ‘Basketball Diaries’ (1995) in which he played the role of a drug-addled friend with Leonardo Di Caprio as the lead.
‘Basketball Diaries’ premiered at the famous Sundance Film Festival in 1995, and its critical appreciation meant that both Wahlberg and DiCaprio made their first serious mark in Hollywood.
Wahlberg built onto his transition from rapping by going full time into being an actor and backed up his performances by starring in multiple films such as the remake of The Planet of The Apes (2001) and The Italian Job (2003), while at the same time, missing out on meaty roles in Academy Award-winning film Brokeback Mountain and star-studded Vegas heist drama- Ocean’s Eleven.
However, his big critical breakthrough was yet to come.
In 2006, Wahlberg played an unpleasant, foul-mouthed Massachusetts State Police officer in Martin Scorsese's critically acclaimed thriller- The Departed, alongside Jack Nicholson, Leonardo Di Caprio, and Matt Damon.
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This changed the game for him as an actor.
Wahlberg scored himself an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, a Golden Globe nomination, and a National Society of Film Critics Best Supporting Actor award.
It had been a long journey, but finally, Hollywood acknowledged Wahlberg as a serious actor.
Post the success of The Departed, there was no looking back for him. Wahlberg later went on to star in multi-million dollar franchises such as The Transformer series and Ted, both huge Box-Office successes.
He was named as the highest-paid actor in the world in 2017, raking in a cool $68 Million that year, owing to his performances in movies like "Daddy's Home 2" and "Transformers: The Last Night”, along with his multiple income sources across various businesses.
Wahlberg has an insane list of business interests 👇🏻
🍔 Wahlburgers: $1.5 Billion worth chain of restaurants he co-owns with brother Donnie along with a reality show to promote it.
🌊 Aquahydrate: $500 Million worth Alkaline water company he co-owns with rapper Sean Combs.
👟 StockX: $3.8 Billion worth Sneaker reselling marketplace.
🏋🏻♂️ F45 Fitness: $500 Million worth Fitness company.
🏏 Barbados Tridents: An equity stake in a cricket team in the Caribbean Premier League
🚘 Chevrolet Dealership: A stake in multiple Chevrolet dealerships in Ohio, USA.
He is also the executive producer of the multiple HBO TV shows, including Entourage (2004–2011), which is loosely based on his own tales as an actor in Hollywood and his real-life entourage.
Is there anything this guy has not done? 🤯
His latest film Infinite released last weekend, a science fiction flick produced by Paramount Pictures, and is described as ‘Wanted’ meets ‘The Matrix’ as far as the plot is concerned.
Check out its trailer right here, looks like a classic summer flick 🔥👇🏻
Pumped enough for the day right? 😤
Have a good one, and I’ll talk to you guys tomorrow!
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