Margaret Leslie "Molly" Johnson, OC is a Canadian

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

-winning singer-songwriter of pop and jazz.

Biography

Johnson began as a child performer, receiving formal training from the

National Ballet School Canada's National Ballet School, also commonly known as the National Ballet School of Canada, is a classical ballet school located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Along with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, it is a provider of professional ballet tr ...

and the

Banff School of Fine Arts Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...

. Johnson's brother

Clark Johnson Clark Johnson (born September 10, 1954), is an American-Canadian actor and director who has worked in both television and film. He is best known for his roles as David Jefferson in ''Night Heat'' (1985–1988), Clark Roberts in ''E.N.G.'' (1989� ...

, an actor and director ('' Homicide: Life on the Street'', ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

''), and sister

Taborah Johnson Taborah Johnson, also known as Tabby Johnson, is a Canadian singer and actress. She is the sister of actor Clark Johnson and rock and jazz singer Molly Johnson. She began her career in the Toronto production of ''Hair'' as a teenager. She was su ...

, an actor and singer, are also noted Canadian performers. Raised in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, as the child of a white mother and a black father, Johnson started her career in the mid-1960s when, as a young grade schooler, she and her brother were tapped by Toronto producer

Ed Mirvish Edwin "Honest Ed" Mirvish, (July 24, 1914 – July 11, 2007) was an American-Canadian businessman, philanthropist and theatrical impresario who lived in Toronto, Ontario. He is known for his flagship business, Honest Ed's, a landmark disco ...

to appear in ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...

'' at the

Royal Alexandra Theatre The Royal Alexandra Theatre, commonly known as the Royal Alex, is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located near King and Simcoe Street. Built in 1907, the 1,244-seat Royal Alex is the oldest continuously operating legitimate theatre in Nort ...

. In time ''Porgy and Bess'' was followed by '' South Pacific'', ''

Finian's Rainbow ''Finian's Rainbow'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane, produced by Lee Sabinson. The original 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances, while a film version was re ...

'' and other musicals."Molly Johnson"
at

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available fo ...

. Retrieved January 11, 2018. The budding child star was soon enrolled the National Ballet School as she desired to become a

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

. By the age of 17, Johnson was fronting a disco band named A Chocolate Affair. The group lasted just over a year. She was lead vocalist for two

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

bands, Alta Moda in the 1980sAlta Moda
at

Jam! Jam! was a Canadian website which covers entertainment news. It was part of the Canoe.com online portal, formerly owned and operated by Quebecor through its Sun Media division, and now owned by Postmedia Network. Jam! was the only media outlet ...

's Pop Music Encyclopedia. and

Infidels An infidel (literally "unfaithful") is a person accused of disbelief in the central tenets of one's own religion, such as members of another religion, or the irreligious. Infidel is an ecclesiastical term in Christianity around which the Church ...

in the 1990s.Infidels
at

's Pop Music Encyclopedia. Both of her bands had notable singles in Canada (Alta Moda's "Julian" and Infidels' "100 Watt Bulb" and "Celebrate"), but both bands broke up after just one album each. Also in 1980s, she performed as a backing vocalist with Toronto group

Breeding Ground In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

, most notably on their singles "Happy Now I Know" and "Ceremony of Love", both of which received consistent college radio airplay, and had rotation on

MuchMusic Much (an abbreviation for its full name MuchMusic) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. MuchMusic launched on August 31 ...

. She also performed with them live whenever her commitments with Alta Moda weren't in conflict. In 1989, she performed the song "The Best We Both Can Be" for the film '' Babar: The Movie'', and also provided voice work for ''

Babar and the Adventures of Badou ''Babar and the Adventures of Badou'' is a computer-animated children's television series that premiered in 2010 based on the characters created by Jean and Laurent de Brunhoff. The series takes place several years after the original series and ...

'' in 2010. Beginning in 1993, Johnson established an annual concert series, the

Kumbaya Festival The Kumbaya Festival was an annual Canadian music and arts festival in the 1990s.HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

and

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

. She helped to raise over $1 million for people living with AIDS/HIV. Although she has performed as a jazz singer throughout her career, beginning with Aaron Davis and David Piltch in the band Blue Monday and then with a band of backing musicians who would later become prominent in their own right as

Big Sugar The sugar industry subsumes the production, processing and marketing of sugars (mostly sucrose and fructose). Globally, most sugar is extracted from sugar cane (~80% predominantly in the tropics) and sugar beet (~ 20%, mostly in temperate climate ...

, she did not release a jazz album until her self-titled solo debut in 2000."'Another Day' Dawns for Johnson". ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'', July 20, 2002. She followed up with ''Another Day'' (2003). Both albums were well received at home and went on to be successful in France, where she continues to

tour Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed b ...

. In 2006 she released her third solo album ''Messin' Around''. Johnson became the first Canadian female vocalist in the

Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival The Toronto Jazz Festival is a jazz event in Toronto which takes place for 10 days in late June through early July. Unlike the Beaches International Jazz Festival, most of the events are indoors and located throughout the downtown core. The hub of t ...

's 17-year history to sell out a show on the

mainstage MainStage is a music application developed by Apple Inc. designed for use in live performance. Features MainStage might be thought of as a companion app to Logic Pro. It works in much the same way and bears a similar user interface. The focu ...

. She has performed aboard the

Royal Yacht Britannia Her Majesty's Yacht ''Britannia'', also known as the Royal Yacht ''Britannia'', is the former royal yacht of the British monarchy. She was in service from 1954 until 1997. She was the 83rd such vessel since King Charles II acceded to the th ...

before the

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

and

Princess Diana Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, and has performed for

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

and

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

. She has been the subject of various media feature stories, including ''

Adrienne Clarkson Presents ''Adrienne Clarkson Presents'' is a Canadian cultural entertainment series broadcast on CBC Television beginning in 1988. The series ended in 1999, the year host Adrienne Clarkson was appointed Governor General of Canada. Episodes featured artis ...

'',

June Callwood June Rose Callwood, (June 2, 1924 – April 14, 2007) was a Canadian journalist, author and social activist. She was known as "Canada's Conscience". Callwood achieved acclaim and a loyal following for her articles and columns written for na ...

's ''National Treasures'', and

Bravo! CTV Drama Channel (formerly known as Bravo) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel was founded as the Canadian version of the U.S. channel Bravo (which is now owned by NBCUniversal) on January 1, 1995 b ...

's ''Live at the Rehearsal Hall''. In 2007, she was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. Johnson was the weekend host of

CBC Radio 2 CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

's '' Radio 2 Morning'' from September 2008 until December 2013. On November 11, 2008, Johnson released her fourth full-length album, a record of standards entitled ''Lucky'', via

Universal Music Canada Universal Music Group owns, or has a joint share in, many of the record labels listed here. According to UMG official site, the main labels are Abbey Road Studios, Bravado, Capitol Music Group, Decca Records, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Grammopho ...

and

Universal Music France Universal Music Group owns, or has a joint share in, many of the record labels listed here. According to UMG official site, the main labels are Abbey Road Studios, Bravado, Capitol Music Group, Decca Records, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Grammopho ...

. In March 2009 ''Lucky'' took home the

Juno Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year The Juno Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year has been awarded since 2000, as recognition each year for the best vocal jazz album in Canada. Winners Best Vocal Jazz Album (2000 – 2002) Vocal Jazz Album of the Year (2003 – present) ...

. She is currently working on The Black History Project: Canada - an initiative she has started to update Canadian history to include its impact and involvement with regards to

Black Canadian Black Canadians (also known as Caribbean-Canadians or Afro-Canadians) are people of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent who are citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The majority of Black Canadians are of Caribbean origin, though t ...

history and the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. T ...

Discography

*''Molly'' (Oasis Entertainment, 1999) *''Another Day'' (

Marquis A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

, 2002) *''Messin' Around'' (

Anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

and Universal Canada, 2006), re-released as ''If You Know Love'' (

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

, 2007) *''Lucky'' (Verve and Universal Canada, 2008) *''The Molly Johnson Songbook'' (Universal Canada and A440 Entertainment, 2011), compilation *''Because of Billie'' (Universal Canada, 2014) *''Meaning to Tell Ya'' (Belle Productions, 2018) *''This Holiday Season'' (Universal Music Canada, 2020)- EP, Holiday album *''It's a Snow Globe World'' (Universal Music Canada, 2021), Holiday album (including re-release of This Holiday Season EP

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Molly 1959 births Living people 21st-century Black Canadian women singers Canadian women rock singers Officers of the Order of Canada Canadian women jazz singers Musicians from Toronto Narada Productions artists Black Canadian broadcasters CBC Radio hosts Canadian women pop singers 20th-century Black Canadian women singers Juno Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year winners Canadian women radio hosts Canadian people of Trinidad and Tobago descent