Beyond Saint Podcast

Mike G: Faith, Fear & the Journey in Music Industry Leadership

• Ira DeWitt • Season 3 • Episode 1

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In this insightful episode of Beyond Saint, Mike G, partner at UTA and a seasoned music agent, shares his two-decade journey in the entertainment world. From starting in radio sales to managing top artists like Akon, Chris Brown, and Cardi B, Mike illustrates how faith and fear impact personal and professional life. Born and raised in Los Angeles with an Egyptian Coptic Orthodox background, Mike discusses how his spirituality shapes his career and decisions. He emphasizes operating from faith over fear, highlighting personal challenges like overcoming family adversities. This episode provides a compelling look at the intersection of faith, psychology, and the high-stakes music business, offering inspiration for anyone striving to balance belief and ambition.

SPEAKER_02:

Who do you represent now?

SPEAKER_00:

I'm fortunate enough to work with a number of clients. You know, I work with the Kid Leroy. I work with Lil Wayne. I work with Cardi B. I work with Lotto. I work with Wizkid. I work with Busta Rhymes.

SPEAKER_02:

Have you ever felt ostracized being in the kind of business that you're in?

SPEAKER_00:

I haven't personally experienced like, oh, he's Christian, he's Catholic. It's really based off merit and my work at the end of the day. I want God to be involved in every decision I make professionally, personally. I'm a big believer. Like you could literally read the book of Proverbs and apply it to anything in life and you'd be very successful. It doesn't really matter what business you're in. I feel like fear holds everybody back. Like I'm never gonna let fear dictate something I really wanna do.

SPEAKER_02:

We're here today, Beyond Saint, with Mike G. What's your actual last name? Can you say, or you don't

SPEAKER_00:

want to say? Yes, my actual last name is Girgis.

SPEAKER_02:

Girgis, okay.

SPEAKER_00:

And I knew when I got into the industry that people were going to have a hard time announcing it, just because they just never know how to announce it. So I thought Mike G would stick, and it actually worked.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, and what's your background? What are you culturally? I

SPEAKER_00:

am Egyptian. ethnicity, born in Los Angeles, raised in Los Angeles. Oh,

SPEAKER_02:

really?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay.

SPEAKER_00:

Kaiser Hospital on Sunset. Really? Very LA. Oh,

SPEAKER_02:

very LA. Okay. I was not expecting that. I thought you were really going to say you were from like New York or I don't know, some like Chicago, but Mike G. I get Gurgis is a talent. music agent at UTA?

SPEAKER_00:

Correct. I'm a partner at UTA.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, you're a partner at UTA. Oh, that's amazing. Okay. Tell me a little bit about your background.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay. Yeah. So I've been in the entertainment industry for about close to like 20 plus years. Out of college, I worked in radio. So I had just basically corporate sales background, advertising sales. It's where I really got introduced to the music business. And in about 2007, 2008, I was a big fan of the show Entourage. Everybody. Yes. I used to watch the show and I would tell myself, I'm like, you know what? I could probably do that for a living because at the end of the day, it's all selling. So whether you're selling advertising or talent, sales is the number one key in all business areas. So I started transitioning into music, so I started representing DJs at Power 106. I worked at the station from 2007 to 2009. And then I got introduced to an artist and one of the DJs came up to me and was like, do you want to manage this artist?

SPEAKER_02:

Can you say names?

SPEAKER_00:

Oh yeah, it was DJ Sour Milk at the time who's still on the radio. That's a great name, Sour Milk. Yeah, it's a great name. He's actually my first client ever. I still see him all the time.

SPEAKER_02:

Really?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, he's a good guy. There was an artist by the name of Ya Boy and he was from the Bay and he had a song called We Run LA and they played us the record and we're like, hey, this song could be really big. So we ended up breaking it on the radio station when radio was very prominent and relevant in the music industry. And you could break

SPEAKER_01:

records.

SPEAKER_00:

We could break records, and we were at the station, so we had a little bit of an advantage. And the record was the biggest record that year in L.A. So, yeah, that's how it all started. And eventually I left radio, which was a very comfortable... lifestyle and salary for me at that time. And I was about 32 and I'm like, oh, I want to represent talent. And that's how I transitioned.

SPEAKER_02:

I think you said it's a sales position, but I was also in the music business for a long time. I ran a label under Universal and Fontana. And I feel like an agent is not just sales, but also psychology too. Like you're like half psychologist. I mean, I guess like a... layman like psychologists and sales because a lot of the artists and talent they need a lot of like reassurance and hand-holding and this is a good idea you should do this you know

SPEAKER_00:

you know you know well i always tell everybody um because we have a lot of young agents and assistants in our company if I was to do it all over again, I probably would have majored in psychology. Because business is psychology. And I think the advantage I had, because I never came from the mailroom, so I didn't start at the agency. So when I left radio, I became a manager, and I just started meeting artists, and the first significant artist that I worked with who wanted to sign my artist was Akon. And at that time, Akon was just on fire. I still work with him 15 years later. You do? And it was a wild journey. But I started working with him on his team. And lo and behold, a couple years later, I met Chris Brown. And Chris Brown was coming off everything that he had gone through from 2012. And I became his manager for four years and resurrected his career. Wow. So you learn a lot about human psychology when you're actually managing an artist. I think when you're an agent, you're always separated a little bit from the manager and the artist. It works a little bit differently, but just working with Chris and Akon and a chance to work with A-list artists for like 10 years, by the time I left Chris and transitioned into the agency world, I had a huge advantage because of the relationships I had. So when I came in, I came in as a pretty senior agent at UTA when they were still building their music department.

SPEAKER_02:

That's awesome. Who do you represent now?

SPEAKER_00:

I'm fortunate enough to work with a number of clients. I work with the Kid Leroy. I work with Lil Wayne. I work with Cardi B. I work with Lotto. I work with Wizkid. I work with Busta Rhymes. I work with Kelly Rowland, Jeremiah. I got just a number of artists that I work with. I

SPEAKER_02:

had a friend who was... I still have a friend who was an agent and he's like... he hates it when people ask him who they represent. And I just never understood that. I'm like, isn't that your calling card?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I wonder

SPEAKER_02:

why. I wonder why, too. And I'm like, that's what you do. It's like saying, what's your favorite candle? I mean, I don't, you know. But OK, so tell me about growing up in LA and your spiritual journey. Were you always a Catholic?

SPEAKER_00:

So I was baptized, actually, Coptic Orthodox, which is very similar to Catholicism, right? And I went to Catholic school from first to eighth grade.

SPEAKER_02:

Wait, can I interrupt for a second? Of course. What does Coptic Orthodox mean? I know it and you know it, but a lot of people don't know what Coptic Orthodox means.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, the word Coptic actually means Egypt. That's what it actually really means. It's probably one of the oldest forms of Christianity. I believe St. Mark founded the faith in Egypt. So Orthodox really means original, original faith. Just like Catholic means universal.

SPEAKER_02:

Did Orthodox predate Catholicism? I feel like Catholicism predates

SPEAKER_00:

Orthodox. It might. It's a good question because St. Mark, who wrote one of the four Gospels, went to Egypt and preached the Bible and the scripture. And obviously St. Peter did his thing in Rome. So

SPEAKER_02:

were you always spiritual growing up or religious, Catholic? I mean, Coptic?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, you know, there was definitely like a foundation laid as a child, you know, from first to eighth grade. Like going to Catholic school definitely like gave me that foundation. Oh, you went to Catholic school? I did. I went to Immaculate Heart of Mary. in LA. So it really did help. It lays that foundation as a kid because no matter what happens, when that foundation is laid as a kid and you become a teenager, teenagers stray and they do their thing, but you always come back to your faith at the end. So it did play a big part. It's played a big part in my entire career, to be honest with you.

SPEAKER_02:

Of course, how could it not? So always growing up, even as a teenager, person in faith, You go to Catholic church now.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Or is it you go to Coptic too? How does that work?

SPEAKER_00:

Majority I go to Catholic

SPEAKER_02:

church. And what do you think is the main difference?

SPEAKER_00:

I like the one-hour Mass, to be honest with you. Why is

SPEAKER_02:

Coptic a lot

SPEAKER_00:

longer? It's like two to three hours, which is perfectly fine. Oh, no. Yeah, it's perfectly fine. I like the one-hour Mass. My wife is half Portuguese, half Mexican, so the language barrier, obviously. I mean, Coptic churches do pray in English, and there's a lot of American Coptic Orthodox churches that are... being established in Los Angeles, but yeah, I like the Mass, I like our parish.

SPEAKER_02:

I went to Catholic school my whole life too, and then I kind of was a lapsed Catholic, and then when I returned, one thing I did notice that Mass really does calm me down too. It helps. And I feel like it's the original therapy. You know? It

SPEAKER_00:

really is.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, so I read, I was doing a little research on you and I read a quote that you said, you always operate from a position of faith, not fear.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02:

Tell me what that means exactly.

SPEAKER_00:

I think it doesn't really matter what business you're in. I feel like fear holds everybody back. And when I do something, I really do feel like I'm in God's favor. Like I'm never going to let fear dictate something I really want to do or somebody I really want to call or somebody I really want to work with or something I want to do, right? Because I never want to live life without any regrets. So, I mean, David the prophet after Christ is probably like my favorite biblical figure because he really operated with no fear, right? Like he just really had faith and he really, I mean, that's the faith thing. I wanna have, because at the end of the day, most fear is just really in your mind. It doesn't really exist. It really, really doesn't. And it's something that lives inside us that I think we all face, like we're all scared of something, and you gotta pray on that, because fear's technically from the devil, according to the Bible.

SPEAKER_02:

Really? It

SPEAKER_00:

is.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, do you have a specific example that you can give to us?

SPEAKER_00:

As far as like fear over faith? Yes. Faith over fear. Faith over fear. I'm just trying to think as far as like from a business perspective or from a life. Well, I'll give you something that's more personal. So I'm married and my wife had a miscarriage a few years ago. I'm so sorry. And there's a lot of fear and a lot of pain when it comes to that, especially on the woman's part. And couples that go through that probably don't ever want to experience that again. I've had a

SPEAKER_02:

miscarriage pretty late, too, between number one and number two, and I was devastated. I was like four months. That's far.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, and there's a lot of fear that takes place. We're human beings at the end of the day. We're very fragile.

SPEAKER_02:

Especially your first baby. That's even more frightening, I think. Absolutely. Because you don't know if this is a problem you have or it's going to happen again, but a lot of women have miscarriages.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely, but you know... we went for it and now she's eight months pregnant and thank god everything's healthy like baby's healthy and she's gonna give birth next month but it was a journey to get there um and that was one thing we're like we're not gonna let fear or pain or pain or the fear of going through that again dictate what we're gonna do next so that's more personal yeah you know

SPEAKER_02:

uh have you um being as religious and openly religious as you are about your faith, have you ever felt ostracized being in the kind of business that you're in? Because music business can be a little bit demonic at times.

SPEAKER_00:

You know, I think in general, there's going to be good and evil in every business, right? It just happens to be a little bit more in entertainment because I think greed, narcissism, egos all get in the way. Me personally, I haven't experienced that. Like all my Jewish friends at work have celebrated me. They've always been great. So I haven't personally experienced like, oh, he's Christian, he's Catholic. it's really based off merit and my work at the end of the day. But I understand that. I do understand, you know, like, you know, my license plate says God's bro.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, I love it.

SPEAKER_00:

So it's funny that it's become like a thing in our industry where people take pictures of my car all the time and my license plate and post it on Instagram.

SPEAKER_02:

I love

SPEAKER_00:

it. So I'm proud of it. And I actually think it's a work towards my benefit. It hasn't, it hasn't hurt me or not yet. If it does, I'm sure everything will work out.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. Yeah,

SPEAKER_00:

we gotta have faith, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, who's your favorite artist you may or may not, like, not even in your roster?

SPEAKER_00:

Of all time?

SPEAKER_02:

Of all time.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay, it won't be on my roster because I love all my roster. I'm just saying,

SPEAKER_02:

like,

SPEAKER_00:

just... Who's my favorite artist of all time? You know, I've been asked this question before. I think if I had one chance to represent one artist... It'd probably be Elvis Presley.

SPEAKER_02:

Really?

SPEAKER_00:

Okay. Yeah, it would be Elvis. Did you watch the movie?

SPEAKER_02:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

He never toured internationally. He never left the U.S. There was a

SPEAKER_02:

reason for that, though. I can't

SPEAKER_00:

remember. Because he had a very...

SPEAKER_02:

Fear of planes.

SPEAKER_00:

And a manager that wasn't very kind.

SPEAKER_02:

Horrible. Yes. It was a really tragic story, I felt, like the Elvis Presley story.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

I felt so sad for him that last Vegas performance. He's all

SPEAKER_00:

sweating. Died very young. Yeah, died very young. At 40. You imagine if there was someone in his life that probably could have helped him that had his best interest and just didn't look at him as a product line or someone that you're making a check off. You know, he's a human being. Someone I know dated him

SPEAKER_02:

near the end of his life. Oh, that's wild. Pretty seriously. And I think there was no help. I think he was so far down the rabbit hole with addiction. I think there was no helping him. Sad. But what's your favorite song?

SPEAKER_00:

For Elvis?

SPEAKER_02:

No, for anybody.

SPEAKER_00:

Of all time? That's a good question.

SPEAKER_02:

Top three.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm a 90s R&B guy, so I like 90s R&B. Actually, Keith Sweat is one of my favorite artists ever. I have a funny Keith Sweat story, since you know him. So we were doing a big show in Atlanta with Chris, and Keith called me, and I've never spoken to Keith, and he's like, oh, I really want to bring my sons to the show. And I'm a fan, so it's kind of cool when someone that you grew up that you're a fan of calls you for a favor, and I'm like, oh, you want to come to the show? Of course I'll take care of your sons. And I'm like, would you want to come out on the set tonight and perform with us? And he's like, are you kidding me? I'm like, no, I would love that. And we actually brought him out that night, and he sang, I think, Nobody was the record he did. And that was a great show in Atlanta.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Those were the guys I worked with. I'm like a 90s R&B

SPEAKER_00:

person, too. I'm obsessed with 90s R&B.

SPEAKER_02:

Genuine. I worked with Genuine. I worked with Ronald Isley. I actually did the last Ronald Isley album. Kendrick Lamar album.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, amazing.

SPEAKER_02:

Kendrick Lamar wanted to work with Ronald Isley and he kept saying no. And I was kind of at the end of my career and I said, Ron, you should do this. He goes, who's that kid? I'm like, he's kind of big. He's like, no. I'm like, okay. I have a PhD in psychology. I'm like, now I'm going to play psychologist. I'm going to go to his house. I'm like, Ron, I know you don't need this. Like, you're a legend, right? I go, but he is like the hottest thing right now. And you should really do this. It would be like such a good look for you. And he's like, I'll only do it if he comes to St. Louis and records at your studio, meaning I used to have a studio, meaning my studio. I'm like, okay, I'll try. So I go back to Larry Kahn, who was the person who was trying to get me from Interscope to convince Ron. He said yes. So Kendrick Lamar came to St. Louis for maybe like two weeks and they recorded How Much Does a Dollar Cost? And We ended up going to the Grammys that year.

SPEAKER_00:

That's a great story.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, and he thanked me. He was getting a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys, and he's like, I want to thank a few people, my mom, my dad, my brother, Ernie, and thank Ira. I was like, what? And the Beatles were there being honored the same year, and the living members turned around like, who's Ira? I'm like, that's... My husband's like, oh my gosh, you made it.

SPEAKER_00:

That's really good. That's a great story. It's a cool little story, yeah. That's great.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, it's a cool little, and then I retired after that because I'm like, I can't, there's nothing more to do for me in this music business. Plus, I was like a little burnt out too.

SPEAKER_00:

How long were you in

SPEAKER_02:

it? About 10 years. What do you think, Flea? 10 years in the music business? About 10 years, yeah. What other albums did we put out? Genuine, Ron Isley. Johnny Gill. Johnny Gill. I like Johnny Gill. New edition. Yeah, that's all the good 90s. So yeah, I'm still really good friends with Johnny. We talk all the time. But yeah, let's go back to, do you ever listen to Egyptian music?

SPEAKER_00:

I do a little bit, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

I love Mohamed Ramadan.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, yeah, he just did Coachella.

SPEAKER_02:

He did. I think he's the only Middle Eastern artist to ever do it.

SPEAKER_00:

Is he? I thought there was a girl named Eliana last year. She did it, too.

SPEAKER_02:

Eliana?

SPEAKER_00:

She's Middle Eastern, right?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. She's represented by the guys who represent

SPEAKER_00:

The Weeknd. Yeah, it's Sal. Yeah, yeah,

SPEAKER_02:

yeah. You know, Future used to sleep on my couch.

SPEAKER_00:

I didn't know that, I know. Yeah, yeah,

SPEAKER_02:

yeah, but somehow, oh, but they represent Metro Boomin.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

So that's why I was, so that's how I found out about Eliana. I was backstage, they invited me, because Metro Boomin invited me, because he's also from St. Louis. And I was backstage, and that's how I heard about Eliana.

SPEAKER_00:

I think this is how you and I met at church, when we were talking about Shake. Shake, yeah, Shake's a good friend. Yeah, he's a good friend.

SPEAKER_02:

Recently I saw you posted about the conditions in Syria with the Christians. And I was a little surprised. Do you want to talk a little bit about what's going on over there?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I think... I think Christian persecution has been going on for a long time, right? Like when you look at data and stats in 2010, like I believe there was like 1.5 million Christians in Syria. It's down to less than 200,000 Christians. There's consistent discrimination and persecution. And if you look at it globally, I believe from 2024, there was 380 million cases of discrimination and persecution across Christians. And the media doesn't want to talk about that. That's why I posted what you saw and we had that conversation, over 4,400 Christians were murdered for their faith last year that nobody's talking about. There was over 7,700 Christian properties and churches damaged last year. in 2024 and I believe there was like over 200,000 cases of people fleeing or hiding because of their faith. It's a consistent problem and my issue is the media doesn't wanna talk about it. They never wanna talk about it. I feel like the Christian faith and the Catholic, the Christian and Catholic faith at times is very disrespected and no other faith is disrespected.

SPEAKER_02:

I have to agree with you on that. I feel like if, I feel like the Jews are a little bit disrespected too, and not the Armenians. 100%. But I feel like any time you speak about Christians getting persecuted, all of a sudden it turns out to be like you're an Islamophobe or something. Why do you think that you can get away with hurting Christians and there's no repercussions for it? I call it selective rage because there's... millions and millions of people protesting all over the world for Gaza. Why isn't anybody helping the Christian cause? Why is the selective rage going on?

SPEAKER_00:

I honestly think it's media, right? Whatever media wants to pay attention to, that's but they're gonna pay attention to, so. Why

SPEAKER_02:

doesn't the media care about us?

SPEAKER_00:

That's a great question. I mean, we should have that conversation. I know like Fox News, Fox Nation, they'll touch on faith and they'll talk about it, but the other media outlets don't talk about it. But

SPEAKER_02:

it's like 4,400 people in Syria. There's a ton of people in Yemen, right? A ton of people in Yemen. Christians in Yemen getting killed. Egypt, correct?

SPEAKER_00:

Correct.

SPEAKER_02:

I mean, something has to give. It's Ethiopia too.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. I think the last time we got some coverage is the 21 Martyrs in Libya that were Coptic. I think the 21 were Coptic and one converted. What year was that? I feel like that was 2017, 2016. No, actually it was 2015. It's the 10-year anniversary. So the

SPEAKER_02:

21 Martyrs movie was only 10 years ago?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

That story's only 10 years old?

SPEAKER_00:

That's only 10 years old.

SPEAKER_02:

I'm really like, it really bums me out. I mean, I'm of Armenian descent and we've been getting persecuted for literally a hundred years and it's like decades and it's still going on. Like we get attacked from Azerbaijan all the time and it's all for our faith. I mean, they use like They make up reasons to attack us, but it's always... I believe it's always for our faith. Probably ask somebody who's not Armenian, and they'll give you 10 reasons as to why they're attacking us. But I believe it's because we're Christians. And I think... So how do we change this?

SPEAKER_00:

I think we have to talk about it more, right? Like, I think there needs to be... Especially with this administration, which I think does care about Christians. I do too. Yeah, they do care about Christians that... Someone's got, we gotta consistently discuss it and put it out there on all levels of social media, digital media, and we just need to talk about it more because no one really talks about it. I wish I had the answer to that, but I'm glad I posted that because that's how I ended up on this show. So that helps, right?

SPEAKER_02:

It's almost like our lives are not valued.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And I saw a video yesterday where the Christians in Syria were made to walk like dogs. Did you see that video? No. The Christians in Syria, the soldiers are telling them, walk like a dog, walk like a dog, bark like a dog, and it's just the most disturbing video. And I'm like, how is this not on the radar of the human rights organizations? And how is it not... How does your heart not break? I don't care if you're Jewish or you're Muslim. It's a human rights issue, ultimately, at the end of the day, and no one cares. I kind of feel the same way about women in Afghanistan. Do you see what's going on there?

SPEAKER_00:

No, tell me.

SPEAKER_02:

So the Taliban now says that women cannot even talk to each other in public. It's like...

SPEAKER_00:

What is that?

SPEAKER_02:

What is that? I mean, that's not Islam.

SPEAKER_00:

No.

SPEAKER_02:

Come on.

SPEAKER_00:

It's not.

SPEAKER_02:

I mean, I have a lot of Muslim friends that don't buy into that. And the things that are going on in Afghanistan are like pure trap. Seriously, the entire world needs to band together. Like Ukraine, how the rage in Ukraine, how we were all sending money to Ukraine. There are like, there's like this whole thing called Bajabazi boys in Afghanistan, have you heard about it? Because premarital sex is not allowed in Afghanistan, it's such a rigid system with, to the letter of the law with religion that they, and this is not like an isolated incident. There's a whole documentary about it. They are taking boys under the age of like 16, dressing them up as women and using them for prostitution. Basically as slaves. It's like a sex slave. You can buy like a poor boy from a family. And it's called The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan. There's a whole documentary around it. And I feel like it's just like their lives are like mean nothing like that unrages me more than any war that's going on

SPEAKER_00:

this is pure evil it's pure

SPEAKER_02:

evil and i we're just sitting back and doing nothing about it and i feel like this is where we can all collectively it doesn't matter what religion you are and say you know what this is wrong i don't know i didn't mean to get off

SPEAKER_00:

on no i i i agree with you 100 you know it's you know like when you read the bible like it does prophesize Christians will suffer. So it is predicted in the Bible, but I think we just have to talk about it more and really make sure people are paying attention. Because again, like I said in the beginning, I think it's the most disrespected faith out of all the faiths.

SPEAKER_02:

110%. And

SPEAKER_00:

the disrespect needs to stop.

SPEAKER_02:

Exactly. And the people who are, I would like, listen, whatever side of politics you are, right, whether you're pro-Israel or not, like those people that are, like I would have so much more respect for them if they were, okay, okay, you're upset about Gaza today, yeah, because they're the small guy, If you were doing the same thing for the Bajabazi boys, for the women, for the Christians, I'd be like, you know what? Those are those kind of people, and I can see where they're coming from. But like I was saying, the selective rage, I can't relate. You know what I'm saying? Because how do you just pick and choose what you're going to get enraged about today? Yeah. And don't get me wrong. I think what's going on in Gaza is really sad. But it's just like this... thousand year war that won't like it's just keeps flip-flopping and it's so sad and there's really no winners with this whole situation but as far as the

SPEAKER_00:

I get what you're saying it's about humanity

SPEAKER_02:

it's about humanity

SPEAKER_00:

you just can't be upset at one thing you have to look at

SPEAKER_02:

everything exactly and that's what I'm saying

SPEAKER_00:

it's not even based on faith it's just humanity

SPEAKER_02:

exactly it's a human rights issue it's not even a faith issue you're upset about Gaza be upset about the Christians in In Syria, being said about the Christians in Yemen and the boys in Afghanistan, the women in Afghanistan, and it's just... How about Iran? I won't even open a can of worms with Iran, but okay. What's your favorite saint?

SPEAKER_00:

My favorite saint? Well, obviously, it's going to be... It's two saints. Well, Saint Mary is the all-time greatest ever. She's

SPEAKER_02:

my girl.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Blessed virgin.

SPEAKER_00:

And then my second favorite saint... Yeah, she's the greatest. When we have this child, I'm going to come back and tell you The miracle she made for this baby. Is it a boy or a girl? It's a girl. Her name's Capri Mary Gerges.

SPEAKER_02:

Capri Mary?

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. Okay,

SPEAKER_02:

good.

SPEAKER_00:

But when she's here, I'll come back and I'll tell you some of the miracles that have happened at our own home in St. Mary. It's been

SPEAKER_02:

amazing. I have a huge devotion to Mary. If you go to my room, I just got three new Mary books. I'm just... I have an obsession with her. Yeah,

SPEAKER_00:

she's the goat. She's really the

SPEAKER_02:

goat. I'm a mama's girl. Your favorite, okay, so...

SPEAKER_00:

My second favorite is Padre Pio.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, he's a stud.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And he's a gangster.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

I heard he was, like, really... Feisty. Because I live in Italy part of the year, right? So people have a really strong devotion to Padre Pio. And people are like, he was gangster. He'd threaten people. I

SPEAKER_00:

like that. He'd be good in the music industry. Exactly. A

SPEAKER_02:

friend of mine was, because he died not too long ago. And a friend of mine was coming into church one day and he was a little late. And he was like, no, get out. Like, he was like, you're late, don't be late again. He's like, no, you two get out.

SPEAKER_00:

You know, it's funny when Shia LaBeouf did his movie, and I'm friendly with Shia, it converted it. Like, he lived at that monastery because he played Father P. Yeah, yeah, sure. Like, it changed his entire life.

SPEAKER_02:

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, it is.

SPEAKER_02:

And obviously, in Italy, I'm friends with a lot of priests, and they say he comes to a lot of the exorcisms. His spirit comes to a lot of the exorcisms, and I think he threatened one demon, and he said, if you don't leave the body of this person, I'm going to make this whole church cave in on you. And I'm like, I told you he was a gangster. And I'm like, okay, it's not very saintly of you. But apparently the church caved in the next day.

SPEAKER_00:

Really? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah,

SPEAKER_00:

it's a good choice. I like this one. Yeah, I've always admired his story and just his piety and just everything he went through, by the way. he had struggles with the church for a long time. They thought he was a fraud.

SPEAKER_02:

Really?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, the Vatican did not believe. He had enemies within the church.

SPEAKER_02:

The stigmata.

SPEAKER_00:

That were bishops. They were saying, no, this isn't real. So it just shows you, like, even, like, you know, we're talking about the music industry, some of the personalities that we have to deal with. But even at that church level, Like, there were people in the Vatican and bishops against him. Really? That I did not know. Yeah, it happens everywhere.

SPEAKER_02:

He's a really profound saint, in my opinion, because I suffer from autoimmune disease and I have a lot of aches and pains a lot of the time. And I read a quote where he said, like, if you live with pain, like, you're blessed. Because, like, I didn't really totally understand it at the time, but I've been reading about it more and I'm, like... seeing the blessing in it, and then you can kind of give up that pain for someone else's suffering. It's like your cross in life. It's like your cross in life, exactly. I think he was a pretty... We don't humanize priests a lot because we look at them as like, they don't get married, they don't have a lot of life experiences, but they really have some of the best insight that I've ever seen in my life. And I think he's probably the... biggest testament to that.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02:

What's your favorite prayer and why?

SPEAKER_00:

My favorite prayer and why? I really like the Jesus prayer. Do you know the Jesus prayer?

SPEAKER_02:

Which one?

SPEAKER_00:

It's a simple prayer that you pray throughout the day. It's really more of a monastic prayer that St. Anthony taught. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner. You say it throughout the day. It's a very, very powerful prayer. Short, Right to the point. I like it. Get your mind and your heart right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

There's

SPEAKER_00:

books on it.

SPEAKER_02:

I say the Hail Mary about, I have to say, even when I do a rosary, but probably 20 times a day.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. I do the rosary too. Yeah. Hail Mary is definitely number two right there.

SPEAKER_02:

If you had to describe your relationship with God in one word, what is it?

SPEAKER_00:

One word?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

I would say it's a partnership. And the reason why I say that, everything I want to do in my life, I want God to be my partner. Because as long as He's your partner in everything, less chance of messing it up. To be honest with you. That's for sure. Yeah. I want to be partners with God.

SPEAKER_02:

I love

SPEAKER_00:

that. That's how I look at it that way. I know it's God, the Almighty, and sometimes it's like reverence and you pay respects. But no, I want God to be involved in every decision I make professionally, personally, everything. Because I'm always seeking for wisdom,

SPEAKER_01:

right?

SPEAKER_00:

I'm a big believer. You can literally read the book of Proverbs because it's literally all about wisdom and apply it to anything in life and you'll be very successful.

SPEAKER_02:

I think mine is... protection when I'm scared or even contemplative. I'm always like, God, what should I do? Help me. And I feel like he protects me.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. It's good.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. My word changes from time to time. Sometimes it's love. But mostly it's protection. I feel protected when I'm connected to him.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

You know?

SPEAKER_00:

It's good.

SPEAKER_02:

What are your thoughts on Christian music?

SPEAKER_00:

I think it's fantastic. By the way, coming from the agent world, I look at it... twofold. I personally like Christian music. My wife actually put me on to more Christian music. I wasn't into it at the beginning, but she really got me into it because she, yeah, she grew up like singing in the choir and doing all that great stuff. So I like it, but I'm also an agent. So we actually have a division focused on Christian music. Right. And it's a big business. Listen, I know it's a wildly popular business. It is. It sells a lot of tickets, whether it's at arenas, venues, churches. Have

SPEAKER_02:

you heard of Hakuna? Mm-mm. You should really look at it and maybe think about bringing it into the United States. It's a giant... I want to say Catholic organization for young adults, and it's wildly popular overseas. And do you know about Father David Michael Moses?

SPEAKER_00:

Tell me about him.

SPEAKER_02:

He's a priest, and I think he's in a rock band.

SPEAKER_00:

Really?

SPEAKER_02:

And he sells out like 5,000 person venues. That's big. And, wait, I just lost my train of thought. There's another. Oh, Father Thomas. He's a Dominican priest in Rome. He's the head of the Angelicum Institute, which is a seminary to trade priests. I think he's like one of the top. I don't know if it's Christian, but... Bluegrass music. So there's all these things that are emerging. I'm not a huge fan of Christian music, but I love gospel. I feel like it's got more soul. But I guess that's Christian as gospel.

SPEAKER_00:

It's like R&B Christian music. Gospel's R&B Christian music.

SPEAKER_02:

So I'm a fan of gospel, but I've never been able to get into Christian Christian

SPEAKER_00:

music.

SPEAKER_02:

Does that make sense?

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely. I think just sitting where I sit in entertainment with music, content, and what's being consumed, There is an appetite for faith-based music. 100%. Faith-based content. Like, we see how big The Chosen is. It's massive.

SPEAKER_02:

Love.

SPEAKER_00:

House of David, have you seen that?

SPEAKER_02:

I'm planning on seeing it

SPEAKER_00:

this weekend. So good. This weekend. It's so good. I think it's like number one or two on Amazon. I

SPEAKER_02:

thought it was... I read that it was two.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, there's like an appetite for faith-based content. It's big right now.

SPEAKER_02:

I have a giant appetite for faith-based content. I just haven't been able to connect with the music yet.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Well, I think with the content, with... What's better now than it was before was Back then it was kind of corny when they would do faith-based projects, TV, films. Now it's good. The production's good, the quality's good, the storylines are good.

SPEAKER_02:

Have you seen Cabrini?

SPEAKER_00:

Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

My friend's husband did the movie.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, amazing.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, and he's just shot the new Mary movie in

SPEAKER_00:

Morocco. The one on Netflix, or is that the... No, it's coming out. It's coming out.

SPEAKER_02:

It's coming out in Angel Studios. He was in Morocco, I want to say, for close to, I don't know, several, six months if not more, I don't know. I read about that. It's Alejandro Monteverde. Yeah. And yeah, he's doing big things in the Catholic world. I think he has a deal at Angel Studios to do the Catholic content

SPEAKER_00:

for them. That's good. A lot of great IP.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, thank you for coming on the show. I really appreciate you making the time. I know how busy you are. Thank you

SPEAKER_00:

for having

SPEAKER_02:

me. It was fun.

UNKNOWN:

Thank you.