Atlanta cellist Okorie 'OkCello' Johnson on music, meaning and life transformed

Okorie 'OkCello' Johnson talks career, Juneteenth

Okorie 'OkCello' Johnson talks about his career and a new Juneteenth single. He is also performing in John's Creek at their Juneteenth celebration.

ATLANTA - Atlanta cellist, composer, and storyteller Okorie Johnson — better known by his stage name, OkCello — is redefining what it means to be a modern musician. Blending genres like funk, Afrobeat, jazz, hip-hop, reggae, and classical, Johnson doesn’t just play music — he creates immersive sound journeys rooted in emotion, improvisation, and spirit.

OkCello is performing June 21 at the 2025 Johns Creek Juneteenth Celebration. Click here for information. 

Johnson began playing the cello at age six, but it wasn’t until his 40th birthday that a turning point set his solo career in motion. At the time, he had stepped away from teaching to pursue filmmaking, but the project didn’t come to fruition. Sitting in uncertainty on that milestone day, he picked up his cello and began looping a bassline.

"I just started crying. I was kind of boohooing," he recalled. "That baseline was more eloquent than the screenplay I left the classroom to write."

That improvised session birthed the song "40," which sparked an entire concert series. Johnson performed monthly shows throughout 2015, including dates in D.C. and London. "The world was just different by the end of that year," he said. "I saw myself differently. Other people saw me differently."

Johnson’s style is both contemporary and deeply personal. He doesn’t play traditional Bach preludes or much of the classical canon. "There are a thousand cellists that do that," he said. "What I play is what I hope is the future."

Improvisation, to Johnson, is a form of prayer. "When I improvise, I’m exploring who I am. I’m exploring my connection to my creator," he explained. "Sometimes I ask questions through my instrument, like, ‘What should I be doing?’"

That spiritual connection to music has shaped his family life as well. He wrote songs for each of his daughters after they were born, and even composed a piece called "Conjure" — a romantic imagining that ultimately helped manifest his now-wife into his life. He played it at their wedding.

"My cello has introduced me to some of the most amazing experiences and people in my life," he said. "I call it my best friend."

Though classically trained, Johnson is proud to chart his own path — performing globally, composing for installations, and sharing stories through live looping and layered arrangements. He’s collaborated with artists like India.Arie, De La Soul, and opened for Maxwell, but his heart remains in Atlanta, where his artistic vision has been nurtured.

"Atlanta never said no," Johnson said. "It always said, ‘OK, how are you going to do it? Let me see you do it again.’"

With a new album set to release in October and a Juneteenth single debuting soon, Johnson is once again preparing to gift listeners his most heartfelt work yet. Despite the challenges of today’s music economy — where streams are cheap and attention is fleeting — he remains hopeful.

"I want to give it to people," he said of the album. "Honestly, I do. But when someone says, ‘Your song moved me,’ and then they won’t buy the song — that’s hard."

Still, OkCello keeps playing. Keeps praying. Keeps pushing the boundaries of what a cello can say.

Because, as Johnson has learned, some of life’s brightest moments begin in the darkest places — with one note, one breath, one prayer.

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