Who To Watch: Roland Johnson

You’ve been able to hear Roland Johnson belting out his own take of Blues and Soul classics at regular gigs around town for years, but the singer semi-recently took his music to another level with the release of his first album of original music.

With Imagine This, co-written with local musicians Kevin O’Connor from 7 Shot Screamers and Paul Niehaus IV formerly of Letter to Memphis, and Johnson tells stories he’s collected over the past 68 years.

The album came in number 8 on KDHX’s most played songs of 2016 list, with only two local releases ahead of him – Middle Class Fashion’s iii and a compilation album from the St. Louis Blues Society that also features one of his songs.

Johnson says he really tries to put himself into every song, every time he sings it, and if you come to a gig – whether a Roland Johnson and the Soul Endeavor set or a solo show – you’ll understand what he means. He has an excellent and authentic stage presence.  

When you hear Johnson perform, the Riverfront Times assertion that “few singers in St. Louis can wrest something new out of “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” like Johnson can” makes sense.

The group was named the Riverfront Times best R&B artist in 2007.

You can catch him regularly at Blues City Deli and elsewhere in St. Louis. Check out his website and Facebook page for more show information. His 2018 involvement in Lo-Fi Cherokee is below.