Rapper and producer Drake is going into business with Quibi.
The short-form streaming service, which is closing in on its April 6 launch date, has greenlit a series based on The 48 Laws of Power, the best-selling nonfiction book by Robert Greene. Drake is among its executive producers and will also direct an episode.
First published in 1998, The 48 Laws of Power has long been a favorite in the hip-hop community — it's referenced in songs by Drake, Jay-Z and Kanye West, among others — and in Hollywood. Each episode of the Quibi show will focus on a different law, and the series as a whole will detail the art of gaining and keeping power.
Drake and his Dreamcrew partner, Adel "Future" Nur (HBO's Euphoria), executive produce with Dreamcrew's Jason Shrier, Greene and Anonymous Content's Zack Hayden. Anonymous is producing.
"When Drake and I sat down with Robert Greene, it was incredibly inspiring," said Nur. "The laws allow for a wide range of dynamic storytelling, and Quibi allows us to tell these stories in bite-sized chapters similar to the book."
Added Greene, "I have always thought that The 48 Laws of Power would be a perfect fit for a series, bringing to life the timeless Machiavellian game of power as portrayed in the book. But it was not until Drake and Future with Anonymous Content approached me with their unique cinematic approach to the laws that I knew I could join forces with them and go all in for a filmed interpretation of my work."
Quibi is set to debut April 6 with a roster of some 50 shows, including scripted and unscripted series and what it calls "Daily Essentials" — news, sports and talk shows. The mobile-centric platform will charge users $5 monthly for an ad-supported version and $8 per month for viewing without ads.
