Meet Johnathan Taylor | Composer, Sound Designer, and Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Johnathan Taylor and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Johnathan, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The most important factor behind myself and my brand is the energy that I bring into the room. I have always aimed to spread love, positivity, and good vibes no matter what the situation may be. Bringing that energy brings out the best in me, and it brings out the best in others. If I wasn’t connecting with every person that I get the chance to work with or even a stranger that I may never see again, I would feel that I didn’t do my best work. The entire point of art is to share stories and connect with others, so I carry that with me wherever I go.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a performer at heart. I have always wanted to put on a show, make people laugh, and make music. That passion has grown and evolved as I’ve started working as a creative and I’m excited for where it is going to take me. What makes me so proud of my art is that it can evolve and change as I do. I grew up listening to practically everything under the sun (from classical, to jazz, to old school hip hop, to house, etc.) As i start to craft my own sound, I like to pull from all the many genres and artists that inspired me growing up. The journey up to me working as a creative one wasn’t the easiest. I was an environmental science major that was working landscaping for years to pay my way through college. I knew my heart and spirit was drawn to the arts, but I wasn’t sure where to start. With the help of my theatre professor Jaclyn Faircloth, I was able to be an acting intern at Actor’s Express which is where I met Chris Lane of Multiband Studios, and once the pandemic hit, I was able to make the jump from landscaping into sound design and I haven’t looked back since. It took time for me to trust my talent and work ethic, but the decision to tell stories and live out my creative dream was the best decision I could’ve made. It has come with its lessons for sure. I have learned that there is a value to my creative work, the same way with any other profession, and the life of an artist isn’t the easiest. You must sacrifice your time and energy for it in ways that a typical 9-5 wouldn’t. But I gladly welcome all of the challenges. The biggest thing that I want people to take from my story, is that your story matters. Every story matters. Don’t think that you don’t deserve to be in the room just because your journey leading up to it is different from everyone else’s. That is what makes art so special; you can have 10 people in a room working on one song, but each person is bringing a different story into it. Love your art and carry that love into the world; it’ll be better off for it.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
First off, we’re going to be eating like royalty! We can start with a trip downtown and visit the Georgia Aquarium. After we leave the aquarium, we can go to the World of Coke (I love free samples). Once that’s over, we’ll go to Antico’s Pizza for some good Neapolitan pizza. The next day, we go the High Art Museum, and we can spend a lot of time there depending on what exhibits and events they have planned. Then we can talk a walk through Centennial Olympic Park and have a nice picnic. The next day, we’ll take trip up to Tallulah Falls and spend the day hiking and enjoying the waterfalls and trails. On the way back, we’ll stop in Buford and have plenty of restaurants to choose from at the Mall of Georgia. We’ll also visit Ponce City Market and maybe even stop by the Plaza Theatre and see some cool indie films. We will also have plenty of theatres, like the Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse, to go see some great shows. And we can end the night bar hopping and even get some dancing in at MJQ, Bulldogs, Tiki Tango, and many more.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Multiband Studios. It is the sound design team that I work with here in Atlanta

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Image Credits
@exitrightproductions