Johnson was born and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida, the only son of a public school teacher and Vietnam veteran.
[5][6] He became interested in journalism as a child, inspired by African American journalists such as Ed Bradley, Bernard Shaw, and Dwight Lauderdale.
[8][9] In 2010, Johnson relocated to San Francisco to work for KQED, an NPR affiliate, where he served as morning newscaster until early 2016.
[10] Truth Be Told dealt with issues of race in America, and four episodes were broadcast nationally.
[6] He was also a substitute host of KQED's Forum and taught courses in podcasting at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.