Today we’d like to introduce you to Bobbi Johnson
Hi Bobbi, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born in Bowie, Maryland as an only child to two pastors. I fell in love with storytelling at a young age. I wasn’t the most popular girl in middle school so I would read books and write stories about friends that I didn’t have. I remember my eighth-grade year. I had started writing Degrassi-like stories about all of the people in my class. I let the girl who sat beside me in English read it and it blew up from there. My classmates would pass the book around at lunch and recess, begging me to write more when they had read to the end. That’s the moment I realized storytelling could be cool to more people than just me. I was small-time famous for about two weeks until everyone found out what characters they were and hated me. I left the character key I had made in the back of the notebook on accident. I named one girl Hallie because she had the worst breath in our grade (get it? halitosis?). Yeah, they might have been justified. Even though my middle school fame was more Kelis than Beyoncé, their attention gave me confidence in my writing ability.
I became interested in slam poetry in high school. I went to Brave New Voices, an international slam poetry competition, twice and I published a book of poetry through a non-profit at sixteen. Slam poetry helped me find my love for the stage, which turned into a love for acting. Acting is where I learned I could become a story and that ignited something in me. Now, I’m a recent NYU Tisch Drama graduate (2020 baby), I am a founder of an up and coming production company, and I am in the middle of writing my first television series. I am excited to showcase dark-skinned black women in all of our multifariousness and splendor. I have a long way to go but I’m proud of the journey so far, not too shabby for Grace Christian School’s most popular loser.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Woo chile, I’ve had some snags but God is good. I still owe NYU my right arm and all the blood from my fattest thigh. I would go into my dean of student’s office every semester and cry my way into enrollment. Shout out to Dean Cameron because he never turned me away! NYU’s scholarships are a lot like NYU’s football team, they don’t exist and they’ve convinced themselves they’re too good for them anyway. Though, they are rich in racism, generous too. I was discriminated against every day by the majority of my peers and professors. One of my acting teachers referred to me as a “little negro girl” in front of my whole class and they laughed. I developed imposter syndrome in the school of my dreams. I had days where I wanted to give up but I’ve found I’m not too good at giving up on myself. It just doesn’t work for me.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I consider myself an actress, a writer, and a doer. I am a storytelling specialist. I’m known for my big hair and my boldness. I am afraid of the things that need to be said but I say them anyway. I am a believer: in God, in myself, in change, in possibility, in my peers. I’m most proud of my first short film, Snap. It’s about the ignored disappearances of Black women in America. I wrote, directed, edited, and starred in it. It was the proof I needed that if I want something, I don’t have to wait for someone to validate it. I can make it myself. What sets me apart from others? That’s a question I’m not sure I can answer. I can tell you what I most appreciate about myself. I go scared. I’m a very sensitive, anxious person, but I am so determined to get everything I want from this life. I’ve found strength in my softness. I like that about me.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I love Good Reads! I’m a nosy book lady. I like to see what my friends are reading. Good Reads also put me on to authors that look like me. I think that’s really important for all POC artists. The Artist Way by Julia Cameron is wonderful. It helped me find my love for artistry again under the self-doubt I developed in college.
Contact Info:
- Website: bobbidjohnson.com
- Instagram: bobbi.shmurdaa
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