Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tevin Johnson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Tevin, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

For me I feel like being a music artist and personal trainer in spaces that are so heavily saturated is a risk in itself! Nowadays you have even more pressure on yourself to be creative & different but also authentic to who you are! The hard part is that sometimes you don’t know who you are! Ive been a music artist now about 7 years and my growth from when I started till now is night and day but I still have room to get better! I’m my design team, my management team, my road manager , my social media manager, honestly everything except for videographer and engineer! And it gets hard but seeing the reaction to your music and how people want more drives you! I used to want to be a superstar and be in the lights but nowadays im okay with being added to new playlists and adding new followers who allow me to be the soundtrack to their lives! So the risk reward ratio for me is slim!

When it comes to being a Trainer/Fitness influencer its way more introspective! You have to have a certain shoe, or headphone for you to be validated! Not how much education you’ve done or continue to do! I’ve been a Trainer/Gym Manager for 5 years and I’ve spent hours learning and perfecting my skills in that space! The risk is that someone who has more followers attract the attention over someone who generally wants to help people be the best version of themselves. The up hill battle is steep! Clients who play you, continue to flock to TikTok fitness “gurus” who aren’t as credible or personal. The biggest risk is knowing you won’t be a millionaire or have a billion followers from helping people be great! But I love both paths I’m currently

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

So, I’ve been performing and singing since I was in middle school. I was the lead in all the plays, I had a main singing part in every choir performance and I sang at church (typical lol). I always knew in my heart I was an entertainer from watching the temptations performing in my living room to rapping in front of crowds at shows! It’s always been in me!

Started rapping my sophomore year of college with some friends just for fun. Hip Hop flows through my blood my granddad , father and cousin were all dj’s in their younger years! My mom used to play 90’s R&B on Saturdays to clean the house! Its been my life! During that freestyle in college I made up in my mind I wanted to take it serious! I recorded my first few songs and put them on a cool app at the time called Soundcloud! It was very new and no one had really used it but it was free! 3 listens and likes and I was on top of the world! I moved to a new city after college and went to make a dent in my music career, those 4 years of my life were amazing! I met like minded people , I traveled to 10 cities performing music I wrote in my notepad on my phone and people loved it!

Im still on this music journey shifting my focus to being myself and providing good vibes for people who work a 9-5 like my but also go through life things every day! From relationships to energy shifts my music is for everyone!

I got into fitness on not so great terms! Something about me that very few people know about is that I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2016 and from there I knew I needed to make a change! I started by working out myself @ Golds gym in Charlotte Nc! My best friend from college was a trainer there and I knew he would help me get it together! Over the next few months I took my health serious! I Ate clean I worked out 6 days a week and got into the best shape of my life! Once I knew I could help myself build confidence , feel better and look better I had to help others!

At that time I met my lovely wife (also featured in the mag lol), she encouraged me to quit my boring corporate job and step into the world of fitness and even make it a business! I got my first job at a bootcamp working part time and quickly fell in love with fitness! I then moved up to full time, head trainer , to fitness manager and even helping my first boss open a second location. In that same time I was building my own online fitness presence and business! Fast forward to today! I manage a new gym brand and I have an influx of training clients that I love and am proud of! Over these last 4 – 5 years ive trained a few hundred people and intend on training thousands more!

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

This is the question of the YEAR!

For me a lot of non creatives don’t realize the blood sweat and tears that creative put in when it comes to their craft! During my journey in my music career ive heard a lot of “You sure you want to do this? , I don’t think that will work for you” or my favorite ” You still doing that?” . YES! yes I am continuing to pursue my goals and dreams! Alot of time us creatives take a lot of backlash from family, friends and even spouses but we still get up every day with one goal in mind, WIN! A lot of us are building our legacy and futures today and not allowing projections of doubters to slow us down! But there are some of us who fall victim to it.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

For me knowing that there are so many people kids and adults who all want to do the things that I’m aiming for and doing is what drives me to never stop! Yes you have the A list stars who are music artists and the million follower influencers who are now personal trainers but knowing that I bring something different keeps me going!

Every market on the planet is saturated, thank you capitalism but knowing that no one is going to bring the flavor you bring or the energy you give should always motivate you to win!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/blvcknc
• Other: https://Instagram.com/7hrivefitness https://tiktok.com/Blvcknc

Image Credits
Sheeraz Balushi