{"691219":{"#nid":"691219","#data":{"type":"event","title":"GT Arts Presents: OK Cello\u2019s Epiphany","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EOKCello transforms the stage into an unforgettable, interactive experience where breathtaking musicianship, live looping, storytelling, and spontaneous audience participation collide. Equal parts concert, comedy, and shared adventure, every performance invites you to laugh, reflect, and become part of the show in ways you never expect. Whether you\u0027re a lifelong music fan or simply looking for an incredible night out with friends, OkCello delivers an electrifying performance that\u0027s fresh, inventive, and impossible to forget.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EArtist\u2019s bio:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOkorie \u0022OkCello\u0022 Johnson is an Atlanta-based cellist, composer, looper, improviser, and storyteller who has been featured on the Tamron Hall Show, held a Kennedy Center Office Hours Artist Residency, presented at the Democratic Republic of Congo\u0027s 2022 Biennale, and co-composed and performed Liminal: An Atlanta Concerto with the Georgia Symphony Orchestra. He has scored an Emmy award-winning documentary, Imperfect Alibi; composed the original score for American Voices Against Apartheid, which premiered at the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg before moving to the Kennedy Center; and scored a Suzi Bass Award-winning children\u0027s theatre production, Head to Toe for Alliance Theatres\u2019 Theater for the Very Young.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHis four studio albums \u2014 Liminal, Resolve, Beacon, and his most recent, Funny How Things Work Out (October 2025) \u2014 mark the milestones of an artist who has never stopped pushing.\u0026nbsp;From concert halls to corporate keynotes, his cello has taken him everywhere. In 2024, that included Pixar in Oakland. In 2025, he headlined the Johns Creek Juneteenth Celebration, performed at the Aspen Institute Business Summit, and completed two concert voyages aboard the Ritz-Carlton Ilma superyacht. So far in 2026, he has taken his show to the Midwest, the Pacific Northwest, and Alaska \u2014 headlining performing arts centers in Rolla, MO, Eugene, OR, Fairbanks and Anchorage, AK to enthusiastic full houses.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHe has opened for Maxwell, performed with India.Arie, De La Soul, and Big Boi of OutKast. Additionally, he regularly delivers keynote addresses and performances for organizations such as Morgan Stanley, Intuit, and the LA Unified School District. He is also the inspiration behind Lil\u0027 Okorie and the Magic Cello, a children\u0027s picture book celebrating the transformative power of music, drawn from his childhood origin story as a cellist and the impact of his live performances.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EOKCello transforms the stage into an unforgettable, interactive experience where breathtaking musicianship, live looping, storytelling, and spontaneous audience participation collide. Equal parts concert, comedy, and shared adventure, every performance invites you to laugh, reflect, and become part of the show in ways you never expect. Whether you\u0027re a lifelong music fan or simply looking for an incredible night out with friends, OkCello delivers an electrifying performance that\u0027s fresh, inventive, and impossible to forget.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EArtist\u2019s bio:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOkorie \u0022OkCello\u0022 Johnson is an Atlanta-based cellist, composer, looper, improviser, and storyteller who has been featured on the Tamron Hall Show, held a Kennedy Center Office Hours Artist Residency, presented at the Democratic Republic of Congo\u0027s 2022 Biennale, and co-composed and performed Liminal: An Atlanta Concerto with the Georgia Symphony Orchestra. He has scored an Emmy award-winning documentary, Imperfect Alibi; composed the original score for American Voices Against Apartheid, which premiered at the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg before moving to the Kennedy Center; and scored a Suzi Bass Award-winning children\u0027s theatre production, Head to Toe for Alliance Theatres\u2019 Theater for the Very Young.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHis four studio albums \u2014 Liminal, Resolve, Beacon, and his most recent, Funny How Things Work Out (October 2025) \u2014 mark the milestones of an artist who has never stopped pushing.\u0026nbsp;From concert halls to corporate keynotes, his cello has taken him everywhere. In 2024, that included Pixar in Oakland. In 2025, he headlined the Johns Creek Juneteenth Celebration, performed at the Aspen Institute Business Summit, and completed two concert voyages aboard the Ritz-Carlton Ilma superyacht. So far in 2026, he has taken his show to the Midwest, the Pacific Northwest, and Alaska \u2014 headlining performing arts centers in Rolla, MO, Eugene, OR, Fairbanks and Anchorage, AK to enthusiastic full houses.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHe has opened for Maxwell, performed with India.Arie, De La Soul, and Big Boi of OutKast. Additionally, he regularly delivers keynote addresses and performances for organizations such as Morgan Stanley, Intuit, and the LA Unified School District. He is also the inspiration behind Lil\u0027 Okorie and the Magic Cello, a children\u0027s picture book celebrating the transformative power of music, drawn from his childhood origin story as a cellist and the impact of his live performances.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"OkCello transforms the stage into an unforgettable, interactive experience where breathtaking musicianship, live looping, storytelling, and spontaneous audience participation collide."}],"uid":"36758","created_gmt":"2026-07-23 18:51:03","changed_gmt":"2026-07-23 18:54:35","author":"LaKenya Norris","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","field_event_time":{"event_time_start":"2026-10-09T19:30:00-04:00","event_time_end":"2026-10-09T21:00:00-04:00","event_time_end_last":"2026-10-09T21:00:00-04:00","gmt_time_start":"2026-10-09 23:30:00","gmt_time_end":"2026-10-10 01:00:00","gmt_time_end_last":"2026-10-10 01:00:00","rrule":null,"timezone":"America\/New_York"},"location":"Ferst Center for the Arts ","extras":[],"hg_media":{"680662":{"id":"680662","type":"image","title":"OK-Cello---EVENT-PHOTO.JPG","body":null,"created":"1784832804","gmt_created":"2026-07-23 18:53:24","changed":"1784832804","gmt_changed":"2026-07-23 18:53:24","alt":"OK Cello\u2019s Epiphany","file":{"fid":"264953","name":"OK-Cello---EVENT-PHOTO.JPG","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/07\/23\/OK-Cello---EVENT-PHOTO.JPG","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/07\/23\/OK-Cello---EVENT-PHOTO.JPG","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1464623,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/07\/23\/OK-Cello---EVENT-PHOTO.JPG?itok=IqPVr7hz"}}},"media_ids":["680662"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.okcello.com\/","title":"OKCello"}],"groups":[{"id":"145331","name":"Georgia Tech Arts"},{"id":"660380","name":"GT Arts"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[{"id":"194945","name":"Alumni"},{"id":"78761","name":"Faculty\/Staff"},{"id":"177814","name":"Postdoc"},{"id":"78771","name":"Public"},{"id":"174045","name":"Graduate students"},{"id":"78751","name":"Undergraduate students"}],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}