AJ is an amazing character

According to Wikipedia, Johnny Boy did groom Tony:

Both Sal and Paulie followed Johnny's wishes and supported Tony's becoming capo after Johnny's death of emphysema. Johnny took Tony and his friend Silvio Dante under his wing, and brought them up in the organization as part of his crew.

In September 1982, when his son Tony was 22 years old, and just two weeks before the birth of his granddaughter Meadow, Johnny ordered his son to murder a local bookie: Willie Overall. This was Tony's first murder, and it helped hasten his climb toward becoming a made man.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Sopranos_characters_%E2%80%93_Friends_and_family#Giovanni_Francis_%22Johnny_Boy%22_Soprano

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