XXII 22nd Century Group Inc

On August 18, 2021, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of 22nd Century Group, Inc. (the “Company”) appointed Anthony Johnson, to be a director on the Board, effective immediately. Mr. Johnson was appointed as a Class II director to fill the existing vacancy in the Class II director positon on the Board.

Mr. Johnson, age 46, is co-founder, President, and CEO of Kodikaz Therapeutic Solutions, a world-class next-generation non-viral gene therapy company. He is also a founding partner of Buffalo Biosciences, a life science strategic business management firm that supports the evaluation and commercialization of bioscience technologies from concept to market. Previously he was president and CEO of Empire Genomics, where he transformed a concept formed at a university lab into a preeminent oncology molecular testing enterprise. He also served as the business leader of the stem cell and regenerative medicine franchise for Thermo Fisher (Invitrogen Corporation).

Mr. Johnson is an Aspen Institute Health Innovation Fellow and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. He currently serves on the boards of several organizations including the WNED/PBS broadcasting service of Western New York. He has leveraged his business experience and board positions to mentor numerous technology startups and entrepreneurs, spur state and local job creation, and introduce STEM curriculum into early childhood education. Mr. Johnson is also a founding board member of the Communities of Giving Legacy Initiative, which works to create positive change in the lives of low-income youth of color via access to people, places, and experiences that help them achieve their life goals. Additionally, he serves as Michigan Street African-American Heritage Corridor Commissioner and was an Opportunities Council member for University of Buffalo. Formerly, he was a 15-year volunteer with the Big Brother Big Sister Foundation. Mr. Johnson holds an MBA from Manchester Business School, Manchester, UK, with an emphasis in international strategy, and a BA in biology from Fisk University, Nashville, TN.

Mr. Johnson is independent under the rules of the NASDAQ market and will receive the same compensation as the Company’s other non-employee directors. Mr. Johnson will serve on the Board’s Scientific, Finance and Compensation Committees.

There are no family relationships between Mr. Johnson and any director or other executive officer of the Company nor are there any transactions between Mr. Johnson or any member of his immediate family and the Company or any of its subsidiaries that would be reportable as a related party transaction. Further, there is no arrangement or understanding between Mr. Johnson and any other persons or entities pursuant to which Mr. Johnson was appointed as a director of the Company.

The Company issued a press release regarding Mr. Johnson being appointed as a new director to to the Board, which press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated herein by reference.