Biography

Penn Johnson’s music is folk medicine for the soul. Inspired by the fingerpicking expressions of generations past, conscious hip hop, and ancient songs passed down through plant medicine – each song tells a story that encourages the listener to transmute their pain into blissful awareness. In what could be referred to as Shadow-Work Storytelling, every line of every lyric is carefully crafted to evoke deep emotional releases from the trauma and triggers associated with a human existence. Penn is often told by listeners that he puts to words the emotions they’ve been feeling, but are unable to portray or explain. 

During the chaos of 2019-2020, Penn streamed his medicine songs worldwide via Reddit to hundreds of thousands of listeners in all corners of the globe, all of whom resonated deeply with his music and begged him to come perform in their various countries. 

In 2015, knowing nothing about music or touring, Penn released his debut album For The Trees in Boston, MA with the help of Berkley graduates Cal Brockie and Mark Schwaller and immediately hit the road in his car, donating 20% of all his proceeds to his friends in Northeast Pennsylvania who’d been negatively impacted by energy extraction. Although the record is no longer available to stream, Penn continues to donate 20% of all proceeds.

In 2016, Penn released his sophomore album Experiencing Turbulence in Woburn, MA with the help of producer Chris Faris. He toured this and his previous album around colleges and universities in the Northeast US performing for environmental groups and social justice organizations.

In 2019, Penn released his third album Barefoot Vandit, a compilation of live and lesser produced songs recorded during his travels. One song was recorded live in a shed during a hurricane with a guitar hero microphone, another at The Kitchen Studios in Dallas, and a third in a closet in Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania.

Later in 2019, Penn released a Live album called Tampa Sessions (Live) with Joe Giannotti, followed by a second Tampa Sessions 2 (Acoustic Session).

Creation is a way of life for Penn, who published his first memoir about his time studying environmental action and sustainability in Australia, “Trail Mix & Goon: Adventures Abroad in Oz,” at age 26. He looks forward to publishing two subsequently written novels and several series of short stories and poems.