Garry George "Jellybean" Johnson (born November 19, 1956) is an American drummer, guitarist, songwriter, record producer and musician based out of

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

Early life, family and education

As a youth, Johnson relocated from

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. He received drum lessons at age 13 and two years later began teaching himself guitar. He attended

Marshall-University High School Marshall-University High School was a public junior high and high school serving grades 6–12 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school was founded in 1968 through a merger between John Marshall High School (a Minneapolis public school) and Univer ...

, where he played on its basketball team, then attended the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

Career

As the drummer for the Time, Johnson worked alongside famed producers

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III (born June 6, 1959) and Terry Steven Lewis (born November 24, 1956) are an American R&B/ pop songwriting and record production team. Their productions have received commercial success since the 1980s with var ...

, and recorded with and/or produced many notable artists including Alexander O'Neal, Cherrelle,

New Edition New Edition is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B/Pop music, pop group from the Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson ...

and

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

, with whom he had the 1990 #1 single, "Black Cat". After the breakup of the Time, Johnson worked as a producer, musician as well as songwriter and became a long-time associate of Flyte Tyme productions. His first assignment was Alexander O'Neal's #11 R&B hit " Innocent" (produced by fellow Time bandmates Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis). On this track, he was not only the drummer, but delivered the guitar solos for the second half of the ten-minute long song. From this recording forward, Johnson became an in-demand session guitarist, drummer and percussionist. He also produced a number of hits for the aforementioned as well as

, and helmed

Mint Condition Mint Condition is an American R&B band from St. Paul, Minnesota. The band is focused on diverse genres such as jazz, hip hop, funk and dance. Mint Condition has also been nominated for one Grammy and three Soul Train Awards. The group is cr ...

's 1991 debut album ''Meant to Be Mint''. Johnson re-joined the Time for the

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

feature film '' Graffiti Bridge'' and its accompanying Time album, ''Pandemonium''. Shortly after, Johnson returned to touring with Morris Day, while continuing to produce emerging artists and work as a session player. In 2008, he collaborated with

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

at the 50th Annual

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

, then began work on his solo debut. Following the unexpected death of Prince in 2016, Johnson halted production. He returned to the Grammy Stage for both the 2017 tribute and the 2020 Salute To Prince, and finally released the album ''Get Experienced'' in 2021. In 2022, Johnson founded the Minneapolis Sound Museum. That same year, he and fellow members of The Time were awarded a

Soul Train ''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. After airing locally on WCIU-TV in Chicago, Illinois, for a year, it aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featu ...

Lifetime Achievement Award.

Personal life

Johnson is and played competitive basketball as a teenager. He has seven children.

Hits that Johnson produced and co-produced

* Alexander O'Neal – "Criticize" (#4 R&B) *Nona Hendryx – "Why Should I Cry" (#5 R&B) *

– "Crucial" (#4 R&B) *

– "

Black Cat A black cat is a Cat, domestic cat with black fur. They may be a specific Purebred, breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular or mixed breed. Most black cats have golden iris (anatomy), irises due to their high melanin pigment content. Bl ...

" (#1 Rock/#1 Pop/#10 R&B) *

- "Breakin' My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)" (#3 R&B/#6 Pop) and "Forever in Your Eyes" (#7 R&B).

References

External links

Allmusic – CreditsInsightNews – Black Music Month profile: "Jellybean" Johnson
American funk guitarists American male guitarists Living people Midwest hip-hop musicians Musicians from Minneapolis The Original 7ven members 1956 births Guitarists from Chicago Guitarists from Minnesota 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians {{US-guitarist-stub