Gar-Field grad makes her mark in music

The mobility of a military family seldom allows the chance to call a single location home. Keia Johnson managed to find hers in music.

“I was set on [music] a long time ago,” Johnson said. “When you move a lot like I did, every year or two, the one constant for me became music. That’s it. I was always leaving my friends, my room, my house. Music just made sense for me.”

Now, the Gar-Field High School graduate and “American Idol” alumna continues to make her metaphorical residence in song and Memphis her physical one, all with plenty of performance miles under her belt.

At age 7, Johnson auditioned for a choir with Grammy-nominated gospel artist James Bignon while her father was stationed in Japan. She impressed him enough that he allowed her to sing a full song during a concert.

“I’m talking about thousands of Japanese people who couldn’t even speak English,” she said. “But they could feel the music. I remember feeling right at home in front of this massive amount of people, and I just remember an amazing feeling that transcended language. I said right then, ‘I want to be a part of something like this.’”

Johnson enrolled in Gar-Field in 1998 and honed her vocal skills in an audition-only show choir with the school. Upon graduation, everyone expected her to move to New York and head straight to Broadway.

That, she said, was never her immediate goal. Johnson’s respect for education guided her to south to Arkansas State University, where she earned a degree in communications. She took what she called a “real job” but continued to sing, mostly scratching the performance itch by performing at wedding receptions for about eight years.

Then, on a whim and with no explanation, she decided to try out for “Idol.”

“I literally just up and drove to the audition,” Johnson said with a laugh. “That’s exactly how it happened. It was so epic because it really was that spontaneous.”

Johnson auditioned in Atlanta during Season 9, when different celebrities rotated in and out of the judging lineup. Competitors did not know who would be judging their performances beforehand, and Johnson was amazed and shocked to be singing in front of one of her biggest influences, R&B artist Mary J. Blige.

Johnson sang the vocally acrobatic “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion, and according to Johnson, Blige offered great compliments at the end.

“She talked about my phrasing, how I made the song my own,” Johnson said. “It was the highlight of that entire experience, to have someone you look up to since you’re 11 years old say such nice things about me.”

The performance got her to Hollywood and into the top 60 before she was cut. The problem, Johnson said, was that she received no feedback about why she didn’t continue in the competition, which left her wondering what went wrong.

Ever tenacious, Johnson auditioned again for season 10 – this time in Austin- but once again fell short in Hollywood.

And once again, found herself questioning her missteps.

“I thought I’d get the opportunity to hear them say, ‘Fix this,’” she said. “Just tell me what’s wrong. But I still didn’t get that.”

Crushed and left searching for answers, Johnson was prepared to quit music completely – which is when friends, family and fans stepped up and encouraged her to reconsider.

“It was such an emotional response people gave me,” she said. “One of the key things a friend told me is that I couldn’t quit is because I didn’t choose music – music chose me. That’s a mantra I’ve taken with me ever since.”

With “Idol” behind her, Johnson pressed on, arranging studio time and crafting her own style. Her first EP, called T.I.M.E. – This is Me Exclusively – was released in June.

“I knew I needed to get some original stuff,” she said. “‘Idol’ makes you do covers, and you get comfortable with that, but then people start asking, ‘But who are you?’ It was important for me to create a synergy with this album, and it was all about me trying to find my voice.”

The album includes everything from danceable pop to smooth, jazz-tinged soul. Johnson also got to flex her acting chops in her first music video for her song “Smeared Makeup,” an up-tempo, electronic-laced piece about a girl trying to regroup from a painful relationship. The video was released Oct. 18 and is on her website, www.contactkeia.com.

For Johnson, success is less about money and more about leaving a lasting impression. She is currently working on an educational album to encourage students to focus on the importance of school.

“Success is different for everyone,” she said. “I don’t think there’s only one form of success. You get to decide who you want to be.

“I just want to do what I love to do, make a living and not starve,” she added with her welcoming laugh. “But I don’t desire to be a superstar. I see education and music as a void that I can fill. If there’s something I can do to help in a small way and help give a higher quality of life to someone, I’ll take it with no complaints.”

Staff writer Tamika Matthews can be reached at 703-530-3909.