BUSINESS
MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT
OLD WORLD // NEW WORLD
Old World // New World (OWNW) is a Los Angeles based media and entertainment company founded by Prince Joel and Princess Ariana Makonnen, which is committed to storytelling in many forms –from film and television to books– and focused on powerful Black stories from the Diaspora that inspire global audiences.
OWNW will give a fresh take on Africa by curating new narratives for the continent and bringing to light many untold stories.
Inspired by the royal couple’s own story which is a marriage of Africa, America and the Caribbean, OWNW’s broader mission is to forge a unified Black identity worldwide fostering a sense of a shared history, and a shared destiny.
HOSPITALITY
WABE SHEBELLE HOTEL, ADDIS ABABA ETHIOPIA
As Co-Owner of Wabe Shebelle Hotel, S.C., along with his uncles, Prince Joel serves on the Board of Directors.
The Wabe Shebelle Hotel was built in 1968 by HIM Emperor Haile Selassie I who then gifted it to his five grandsons, children of HIM's late son Prince Makonnen (1924-1957). The hotel is a historic landmark, it was one of two major 4-star hotels in its time alongside the Hilton, but was the tallest building in the city with 11 floors. It includes 110 guest rooms, including executive suites, 3 restaurants (2 indoor, 1 outdoor), 2 bars, and a ballroom which can host over 700 people.
Located in downtown Addis Ababa in the busy Mexico square intersection and just minutes from the African Union, the Wabe Shebelle is a prime location in the center of the up-and-coming financial district.
The hotel was nationalized after the military coup of 1974, but was then returned to the Royal Family in 2011 by the Ethiopian Government. The grandsons of HIM Haile Selassie now own and operate the hotel.
www.wabeshebellehotel.com.et/en/
Ethiopia Royal Family Hotel
Prince Yoel Joel David Makonnen Haile Selassie