Her father was a Tutsi tribesman from Burundi, Africa, and her mother, Suzy, a New Hampshire native, raised Johnson and her half-sister exclusively.

[6] Johnson spent her childhood traveling with her family to numerous countries, living for a time in New Hampshire and Maine, and later moving to Stateline, Nevada, on the shore of Lake Tahoe.

[8] After moving to Nevada, she trained at Heavenly Valley Ski Resort while her mother worked at a casino to support the family.

[11] Johnson has also spoken out against homophobia, criticizing the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia for the "horrid anti-gay law that now exists in that host country".

[13] Johnson lives in Los Angeles and has worked as a special education assistant,[14] has become a Certified Yoga Teacher, and continues to accept requests as an international public speaker.