“I’ve always been very inspired by music," Johnson said, "and after 'The Eminem Show' came out, I started freestyling to myself when I rode my bike around town. It quickly developed into a constant thing, and sometimes I can’t shut it off. It makes it difficult to sleep some nights.”

From that time forward, the Reed City sophomore enhanced his musicality and rapping to a point where he sees things in terms of how they rhyme.

Johnson is a solo artist who has tailored his craft to create messages that will help people get through the daily struggles they might face.

“I have been through a lot and it’s important to me to show people that no matter what you’re going through, it gets better as soon as you start making it get better,” he said. “I want to help usher in the shift in paradigm that I feel is coming. It is no secret that things are not right with the world, and I think the millennial generation is doing an excellent job of seeing this and wanting to change it.”

In the hopes of producing his own beats that exemplify his conceptions, Johnson has begun to work with a few different producers from his hometowns of Reed City and Cadillac. He also plans to collaborate with other artists soon.

According to Johnson, it’s difficult for him because he refuses to work with anyone who does not take the art as seriously as he does.

“I want to take this as far as I possibly can without sacrificing my integrity," he said. "I don’t think anyone in the game can match my talent and my vision. If I didn’t think I was better than almost all other rappers, I wouldn’t be able to bring myself into this genre. I honestly won’t be satisfied until I’m known as one of the greats – I’m well aware that this will take decades of hard work."

Johnson is working on scheduling local shows in the near future.

"It has always been his dream to be a rapper as long as I've known him," said Kevin Wagner, a Kentwood junior and Johnson's roommate. "I think he can make it as a rapper and go somewhere with it. He has a huge vocabulary and is incredibly smart with words."

Wagner said he has been friends with Johnson for as long as he has known him, dating back to freshman year.

"He would always spend hours deep into the night working on songs in his room," Wagner said.

A change in personality

Meanwhile, as Johnson establishes his career he has embraced a stage name, Richard Parker.

The name Richard Parker comes from the Bengal tiger in the story, “Life of Pi,” which Johnson draws his inspiration from.

“To me, this character represented the enormous amount of spirit, within even the meekest human being, that can be called upon to accomplish great tasks,” he said. “I adopted this pseudonym years ago and I have never regretted it. The mentality that comes with this has gotten me through some very trying ordeals."

Like Eminem, Johnson has a second alter ego named 'Dick,' who takes care of the more gritty aspects of the rap game.

As Johnson/Parker/Dick comes closer to progression, he said he refuses to release any rap that he is not completely satisfied with because of his care for the future of rap.

“I am finally at a point in my career where I feel talented enough to go forward with creating music,” he said. “I feel that I have perfected my form and that it will stand out from everything else that is out right now.”

Listen to some of Richard Parker's raps on YouTube (Explicit content warning).

Student Life Editor Nathan Clark contributed to this article.