Paul Johnson, A Famous Chicago DJ, Died From CoViD-19

Paul Johnson, a famous house DJ has passed away from Covid complications in Chicago hospital. Johnson left behind an army of fans mourning the loss of the great artist. His work inspired some of the legendary bands like Daft Punk to pay tribute to Johnson in their song “Teachers”. The Chicago South Side native started playing music when he was only 13 years of age. He was immediately noticed by much older rappers and was hugely accepted by the audience.

His death was confirmed by Chicago record producer Braxton Holmes. “I really admired him. His very strong work ethic and his output were incredible to me. I know how difficult it is to produce records. He had his ear to the street. For someone to be so incapacitated, to be that driven, and do all the incredible things that he did, he’s one of the greats”, Holmes said about his late friend.”The last time I saw him physically was a couple of years ago at a record-release party. He just seemed genuinely happy. It’s unfortunate”.

Paul Johnson was a victim of a street shooting that took place in 1987 when he was only 18 years old. He was hit by a stray bullet that left him paralyzed from the waist down for life. Unfortunately, his bad luck didn’t end there. Following the car crash, in 2003 Johnson’s leg had to be amputated. In 2010, he lost his second leg due to complications from the accident. Despite everything he continued to be dedicated to music, working constantly in his studio and producing new music.

In March of this year, he tested positive for CoViD-19 and was hospitalized in Evergreen hospital in Chicago. He fought for months to get off of the respirator, but unfortunately, he lost the battle on August 4th of 2024.

His tunes, however, will always stay with the people who loved and respected his work. Paul was well-known for mixing up music from the early 80s making house tunes. Because of this, he was labeled by the press as “the master of the house music before anyone knew that house music exists”. Johnson and Daft Punk started hanging out in 1995 producing many memorable sounds, including “Teachers”. In 1997, Johnson co-founded the label Dust Traxx with his buddy Radek Hawryszczuk.

Johnson was always praised for having a big personality and a humble soul. His major hit “Get Get Down” reached international fame in 1999. In the US, it was the number one song in the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play. It was played in nightclubs and festivals around the world, reaching Number3 in Greece, and No.5 in the UK.