Dance, Music, & Song Camps
Joe Zavaan Johnson (he/they) is a multi-instrumentalist, arts educator, Black music researcher, and native of Ohio. He is currently an Ethnomusicology Ph.D. Candidate at Indiana University—Bloomington, where his dissertation looks at the Black banjo renaissance through the lenses of Black studies, human geography, folklore, and ethnomusicology.
Johnson frequently collaborates with grassroots organizations focused on coalition building, community healing, and cultural reparations. He is an inaugural recipient of the Black Banjo Fellowship at the Oakland Public Conservatory of Music, where he teaches banjo and music history classes. Recently, Johnson was a featured artist at the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention, the DeFord Bailey Legacy Festival, and the Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival. His mentors include Jake Blount and Brad Leftwich.
Instagram: @notsoaveragjoe