Rodolfo “Rudy” Mancuso (born February 28, 1991)[3][4] is an American actor, Internet personality and musician most notable for his comedic videos on YouTube and previously on Vine.

Many of Mancuso's videos consist mostly of musical comedy sketches. He has over 5 million YouTube subscribers.[5] He is managed by John Shahidi of Shots Studios, a company that also produces his YouTube content.[6]

Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Filmography 3.1 Music videos 3.2 Film 3.3 Series 3.4 Television 4 References 5 External links Early life

Mancuso was raised in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, the son of an Italian American father and a Brazilian mother.[7][8][9] He attended Glen Ridge High School.[10] He lived in Rio de Janeiro for a while and still speaks Portuguese fluently.[11] He started playing the piano at the age of five.[12] He also has a sister by the name of Marianna Mancuso. Marianna is said to have played a vital role in Rudy's comedy skills.[citation needed]

Career

Mancuso's partnered with Shots Studios to create videos, and launched his YouTube channel in 2016.[13]

He has been featured on Comedy Central's Drunk History and HBO's Outpost. He also starred in YouTube Red's Keys of Christmas along with Mariah Carey and DJ Khaled.[14]

Awkward Puppets, a puppet series on the YouTube platform, is owned by Mancuso and Shots Studios, and is hosted by Mancuso.

Mancuso was the opener for Justin Bieber's Purpose World Tour in Brazil's section of his Latin America shows in 2017.[15]

Dolce & Gabbana invited Mancuso to walk in their Milan Men's Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2018 show on June 17, 2017.[16]

Mancuso performed and presented an award at the 2017 MTV Millennial Awards in Mexico.[17]

In July 2017, Mancuso performed at Villa Mix, Brazil's biggest music festival, in Goiânia for two consecutive days.[18] On October 6, 2017, Mancuso released his first single, "Black & White," in collaboration with songwriter/producer Poo Bear.[19] On October 7, 2017 Mancuso performed at the Villa Mix festival in São Paulo.[20]

In December 2017, Mancuso released a new single, "Sirens", which was quickly taken down as Mancuso was accused of plagiarism. The song's vocals, melody, and some lyrics were taken from another song "Ambulance" by Texas rock band Eisley.[21] On February 22, 2018, Mancuso released his second single , "Magic", in collaboration with Maia Mitchell, his girlfriend. The single was accompanied by two videos, one for YouTube and another vertical video for Spotify.[22]

Mancuso's next single, "Mama", was his first video single without a featured artist. The video, directed by Mancuso, featured Chantel Jeffries, evoked "odd nostalgia", according to Billboard.[23]

In 2018, Mancuso directed the music video for Lele Pons' debut solo single "Celoso"[24] and the music video for Alesso's single "REMEDY."

In September 2018, Mancuso joined O.A.R. at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado for a performance.[25]

Mancuso and fellow Shots Studios artist Lele Pons hosted the 2018 Hispanic Heritage Foundation Awards show.[26] The two performed Pons' "Celoso," with Mancuso playing the instrumental on the piano.

Filmography Music videos Year Title Character 2017 "Black and White" Himself 2018 "Magic" Himself 2018 "Everything is Alright" Himself 2018 "Mama" Himself