Meet Danté X Johnson

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Danté X Johnson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Danté X below.

Hi Danté X, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?

Being one of the only Black people and being one of the only non-binary people in the room is interesting. And sometimes, I’m the only Black non-binary person in the room. With that being said, there are a few things I’ve learned: I’m unique. I have a unique story, with a unique set of talents, a unique outlook on life, and a unique journey. Uniqueness is how artists can take an idea or thought and turn it into a beautiful piece of work. I’ve learned that not everyone wants to work with you, and you don’t necessarily want to work with everyone, but if you are your authentic, genuine, unapologetic, unique self, you attract the type of people who you’ll want to work with forever.

Another thing I learned is you can’t be scared to speak up. If something makes you uncomfortable in the space you’re in, say something. Of course, it doesn’t have to be a public announcement, but still say something. People don’t always take things into account that don’t affect them, which is more reason to speak up.

For instance, with a specific experience, the youth theater I went to always had black-colored mic elements. They weren’t really there to hide the fact that you had a mic, but they worked. My skin is naturally oily, so instead of taping the mic to my face, I pin it through my hair. Now, when I started doing theater at other places, I noticed that black-colored mics weren’t the default. “Tan”-colored mics were. I would sometimes ask, always respectfully, if they had different elements because wearing the tan makes me uncomfortable. Sometimes the theater wouldn’t have any other options, sometimes I was met with laughter or mocking, but most of the time I was met with empathy and disbelief that this is a problem we are still dealing with, something that had never crossed their mind.

Self-advocation is so important because no one knows what makes you uncomfortable except you. And if you don’t speak up for yourself, who will? I’ve learned that being the only one in the room that looks like me has challenges, but that’s what makes my story unique.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

For as long as I can remember my mom was always singing, and so obviously I became a singer too. I fell in love with music and taught myself how to play guitar. As soon as I found my way around the fretboard, I started writing music. Songwriting became therapeutic for me. Last month, in July, I released my first official song, “LuvBug”, under the artist name andanté. I also produced the official music video myself, which made the project even more personal. After I got into writing songs, I got into theater and performing, and I realized that whatever I want to do with my life has to be related.

About four years ago a community theater company in Arizona called Places! Productions expressed interest in having their own yearly Christmas show about an elf who dreams of being a Broadway star. I thought the idea was great and had been trying to write my own musical, but I just had no ideas. So I took on the project but only really started working on it over the past two and a half years. The show is called “Kam D. Cain: The Elf on Broadway” and we just did a staged reading of it that went really well. Places! Productions will produce it this December.

This whole thing feels so surreal because as much as I wanted a show I wrote to be performed, I never realized it would actually happen one day. So I’m excited for this project and many more to come.

It makes me feel like if you put in the work, dreams do come true.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I think my curiosity plays a big part in my journey. When I was younger I used to question everything about everything. I loved learning about new things, and I loved taking things apart to see how they worked. I would always ask why. Now when it comes to my writing and performing, asking why helps a lot. It puts meaning behind the art I create and the reason behind it.

When it comes to “training” your curiosity, I say just start asking yourself questions until it becomes a habit. Start overthinking and overanalyzing art and topics. Go down rabbit holes and embrace the unknown and make it known.

When I first started writing and composing I was so excited I immediately wanted to show everyone and ask what they thought. I like to take people giving genuine feedback as a good sign because it shows they enjoyed your work and they want it to be good. But sometimes there are so many bold suggestions. At first I wanted to change everything to make everyone satisfied and quickly realized I couldn’t, and my work turned into something I didn’t like. So you have to sift through the feedback and see which ones are worth implementing and which ones you can save for later.

Firstly, go with your gut. If someone says something and your immediate thought is “I don’t agree” or “yeah that makes sense,” then you have your answer. To keep myself from getting too confused I like to ask for specific feedback instead of open-ended. The more specific you get the more helpful the feedback will be. Find your work’s voice as if it was your own and let it tell you what works and what doesn’t.

One thing that has really helped me when creating projects is documentation. I used to just keep everything in my head and when it came time to write I would forget a lot of things. I’m one of those people where my best ideas are ones that randomly come to me. So no matter where I am I take the time to document it by writing it down or recording myself talking or singing. Because I will forget and then go to my notes and remember the ideas that I had so I can expand on them. I do think it’s important to be as specific and clear as possible when you write or record. I would sometimes go back to my notes and have no idea what I was talking about and that idea is sadly lost. But every idea needs to be documented.

I think these have definitely helped me on my journey and will continue to do so.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I’m looking for people to collaborate with and/or join my production company Thaaso Entertainment. I’m looking for people who are excited about theater and film. Who love experimenting and aren’t afraid to take risks. People who value meaning and reason behind art. if you are interested and reside in Boston Massachusetts send me an email at:

[email protected].

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Lily Saba
Joe Sullivan
Allison Houston-Zuccaro
Josie Grace

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