[1] He enjoyed his greatest success in the early 1960s, when he scored nine top-ten hits on the pop, country, and adult contemporary Billboard charts, including "Poetry in Motion" and the self-penned "It Keeps Right On a-Hurtin'" and "Without You".

Johnny began to perform at local functions as a child, and by the time he was at Palatka Senior High School he had developed a reputation as a talented singer.

[3] Tillotson became a semi-regular on WJXT's McDuff Hayride, hosted by Toby Dowdy, and soon landed his own show on WFGA-TV.

[4] In 1957, while Tillotson was studying at the University of Florida, local disc jockey Bob Norris sent a tape of Johnny's singing to the Pet Milk talent contest, and he was chosen as one of six national finalists.

[1] His biggest success came with his sixth single, the up-tempo "Poetry in Motion",[1] written by Paul Kaufman and Mike Anthony, and recorded in Nashville in August 1960[8] with session musicians including saxophonist Boots Randolph and pianist Floyd Cramer.

[2] With the demise of the Cadence label, he formed a production company and moved to MGM Records, starting with his version of the recent country charted No.

In 1990, he signed with Atlantic Records and released "Bim Bam Boom", which received significant airplay on Country music stations.

[15] On Sunday, May 19, 1991, his 22-year-old daughter Kelli, who was a model and lived in Encinitas, California died in a traffic accident in Parker, Arizona.

In the 1990s, Tillotson recorded several Christmas songs with Freddy Cannon and Brian Hyland for the Children's Miracle Network, produced by Michael Lloyd.

[16] After a decade-long absence, in 2010 Tillotson released a single titled "Not Enough," a tribute to the military, police, fire, and all uniformed personnel of the United States.