Behind the scenes help leads to drummer role for Johnson

When Columbus resident Casey Johnson was invited to become full-time drummer for the Night Owl Country Band this past summer, he didn’t hesitate to say, “Yes.”

As a familiar face at shows and the muscle behind the soundboard and all things technical, 25-year-old Johnson was very well versed in the band’s inner workings and the Who’s "Hoo" -- working with the guys on their independent country music countdown podcast, as well as shooting footage for his upcoming documentary about the band. Johnson recently took a few minutes to chat about what it has been like adjusting to life on the road, as well as a glimpse into the life and times of a soon-to-be college graduate and self-described gamer who has found himself on the other side of a whirlwind musical adventure.

Q: If you would, Casey, please explain a bit about your previous role with the band and how you came to be drummer.
I was actually hired originally to host the band’s ‘Who’s "Hoo"' Independent Country Music Countdown’ show. We started that show in December 2019 and that was my official role with the band. As it goes, over time, I became the sound man and went on the road with them because I was shooting footage for a documentary. When it came up we needed a drummer – I’ve known Matt my whole life, he and my dad, Mike Johnson, and grandpa played gospel music together in the early 1990s. And so I was already playing drums at his church and he knew I’d drummed my whole life. He knew I could play and named me the interim drummer and my first show in that role was June 30th at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fair.

Q: So how old were you when you first started drumming?
I got my first drum set on Christmas 2003. I was seven years old.

Q: How did you parents react to your taking up the drums?
Yes, my entire family has a musical background. My dad and his dad played gospel music forever and my dad is a tremendous musician. My mom, Shila, her dad, Mike Potter, was one of the most prolific country singers in and around the Columbus-ish area. He was in bands from the 1970s up until shortly before his death in 2007. There have always been instruments in the house and there’s always been noise, so that was never an issue.

Q: So what was it like playing with the band on an interim basis?
I think everybody was optimistic that I could potentially step in on a permanent basis, but when you already have a dynamic you don’t want to mess up the relationship you already have by someone stepping in and it not working out. Then you have to have “that” conversation and there are hurt feelings. Matt said it could end up being me if it worked out.

In my mind I thought, “I’ve got this.” I set at the soundboard for a year and when you are musically inclined you can’t listen to the same concert a hundred times and not know it by heart. I think within three or four songs, everyone was looking at one another like, “This feels good, we could do this.”

Q: When did the band make it official that you would be the drummer permanently?
Our next show after that was on July 4th at Ceraland Park for their fireworks, which is ironically my birthday. And Matt surprised me and the crowd during group introductions naming me officially as drummer.

Q:What was the first thought that went through your mind when he said that?
“I knew it!” Whenever Matt is saying anything on stage he kind of has this big windup like a pitcher from the 1990s. As soon as he started talking and building it up, I knew, “This is going to happen.” I was really excited, but it was very resolute in my mind in some ways. It was very much, “Let’s get to work.”

Q: So, tell us, Casey, what is your day job?
I am the Social Media Coordinator for Disc Replay in Columbus.

Q: How long have you been there?
I’ve been there about three years.

Q: What has the adjustment been like blending work and performing?
Of course, the good news is I was already doing it and my entire life I’ve always been involved in some kind of music. I’m very used to being on the road on the weekends. Being a full time student and having a part time job and trying to maintain some semblance of a social life and being with my girlfriend, Nia, it’s busy.

Q:Where are you going to school and what are you studying?
I go to IUPUC and I will be graduating in May with a Bachelor’s degree in communications and a minor in business with a focus in marketing.

Q: So what are your plans post-graduation?
Right now it is to keep on keeping on. Eventually I would like to move myself into a career, but where I am right now things are going pretty well, so I’m not going to upset the apple cart by moving into anything too wild, too quickly. I am going to wait for the right opportunity to come along because I am lucky enough I don’t have to do anything right away.

Q: What do you like to do in the spare time you’re able to find?
I am a huge gamer, which I work at Disc Replay so I get the opportunity to say, “I have to stay up to date on the latest video games for my job,” however, with that being said, I also really enjoy it. I’ve been a gamer forever. I also listen to pod casts and watch TV with my girlfriend. When I get the chance to veg, I veg.

Q:Where do you see this gig with the band going?
This year has been dizzying with the amount of success and pitfalls we’ve had. We still are not out of COVID and things are still getting cancelled because of COVID, so we are always riding the lightning. But with that being said, had you told me at the beginning of this year we would have a successful album launch, that it would be streaming on streaming services around the globe and we would have the number one song in independent country music I would have told you you were crazy. As we look ahead, I really do look for us to take that next step up and, by next step I don’t mean we are headlining stadium shows, but as we start to work those larger venues and open for larger acts it is an upward trajectory and at the end of the day that is all you can ask for.