Jason Orrin Johnson
| Jason Orrin Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 6 October 1970 Canada |
| 💼 Occupation | Actor / Musician |
| 📆 Years active | 1990–present |
| Known for | Feeding Like Butterflies / Dawson's Creek |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Tanis Dolman (m. 1996) |
| 👶 Children | 2 |
Jason O. (Orrin) Johnson is a Canadian Voice Over and Theatrical actor as well as an award-winning Musician/Composer. He is best known for musical contributions to Dawson's Creek and Roger Corman movies and as former frontman for Celtic folk/rock group Feeding Like Butterflies.[1] – and the narrative voice of Lippy in the critically acclaimed Phobies game series.[2] Johnson is also credited as a notable periphery hardware designer for PlayStation and Xbox in 2007 creating the first of its kind groundbreaking Split Mouse / Nunchuck FRAGFX controller (Top 10 Gadget at CES 2010/USA TODAY).[3][4][5][6][7]
Media Appearances and Cultural Influence
Feeding Like Butterflies was founded in the early 1990s by lead vocalist and songwriter Jason O. Johnson. Founding members of the group included bassist Troy Johnson (brother to Jason), Cellist Martin Johann Kloppers,[8] keyboardist/accordionist Doran Chandler, guitarist/mandolinist Mike Sanders, and drummer Darren Carter. Later versions of the band included guitarist/mandolinist Ken Drolet, Andy Waitkus, Ralph Bently, drummer Derek Loewen, Jason Sound, Greg Pretty and keyboardist/accordionist Rob Thompson.[9][10][11]
The group's first album, John in his Earth Suit, was recorded in Edmonton at Anvil Recording in 1993.[12] That same year, the band was signed to S.L. Feldman and Associates/Bruce Allen (band manager) and performed shows with Crash Test Dummies, Jann Arden and Moxy Früvous.[13]
A video single release of the song "Mexicalli Midbender", which featured singer Johnson hanging from a helicopter in a straight jacket, reached Top 10 rotation on Canada's video channel Much Music.[14]
In 1994, Feeding Like Butterflies won an Alberta Music Award as best alternative artist for the EP cassette Once A Farm, Always A Cow. The album also won the best album design award.[15] In 1995, the band was nominated for an Alberta Music Award as Group Recording Artists of the Year.[16] FLB released a concept album, John in his Earthsuit (Fall 1995), which received ARIA awards for Best Alternative Album, Best Album Design and Peoples Choice Awards.
In 1998, Feeding Like Butterflies released their fourth and final album, Inside the Medicine Man, through Fen-Urim Music The album was a mix of folk, rock and world music.[17]
The band toured Canada extensively performing roughly 500 concerts during the 1990s in arenas, theatres, folk festivals and universities across North America. FLB crossed all genres performing alongside folk artists such as Alro Guthrie, Buddy Guy and Spirit of the West, to rock stages with the likes of Nickelback and 54-40. Feeding Like Butterflies last known live performance was as the headline act of the 2001 North Country Fair Festival.[18]
Video Game Industry
Jason O. Johnson is credited as the designer of the FragFX patent pending mouse hybrid controller - an innovative FPS gaming controller for early Playstaion and Xbox gaming consoles targeting popular titles such as Call Of Duty. The FragFx was one of only two game controllers to make the Break.com CES 2010 TOP 10 GADGETS, and was also highlighted in the USA TODAY CES 2010 wrap up.[19] and featured at the 2008 Golden Globes Access HollyWood "Stuff You Must" Lounge.[20]
The FragFX controller mouse hybrid (first introduced in 2007) was the first to bring unprecedented FPS action to the early game consoles with rave reviews from enthusiast press. IGN gave the peripheral a 9.1 (out of 10), and said it "immediately improved" accuracy and precision in first-person-shooter games, while Play Magazine announced "We guarantee, once you've gone Frag, you'll never go back."[21]
Voice and Film
Johnson also pursued a multifaceted career outside music in Voice acting and Film, including most recent acting roles in television series such as Carrie (Miniseries 2026), Mayfair Witches (Season 3) and Firefly Lane (Season 2), and voice work as the main narrative character, Lippy, in the Phobies video game series.[22]
Jason is married to actor Tanis Dolman and father to 2 children, oldest named Lexi and younger, who is actor Seth Isaac Johnson.
Filmography
Film and television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | ‘’Dawson’s Creek” | Music Performer | |
| 2001 | “Avalanche Alley” | Music Performer | |
| 2003 | ‘’Firefight” | Music Performer | |
| 2022 | ‘’Phobies" | Lippy | |
| 2022 | ‘’Hitler’s Last Stand” | Lt Bobby E. Brown | |
| 2022 | ‘’Firefly Lane” | Cloud’s Father | Season 2 |
| 2023 | ‘’How to Murder Your Husband” | Mitch Krayton | |
| 2023 | ‘’Passiflora” | Mr. Hick | |
| 2026 | ‘’Mayfair Witches” | Dr. Scott | Season 3 |
| 2026 | ‘’Accused: The Karen Read Story” | Brian Albert | |
| 2026 | ‘’Carrie (miniseries)” | Foreman |
Awards and nominations
Feeding Like Butterflies garnered notable recognition as young break out artists in the mid-1990s through regional music awards in Alberta, reflecting their rising prominence in the Canadian alternative and folk-rock scenes. In 1994, the band won two Alberta Music Awards for their early EP Once a Farm, Always a Cow: Best Alternative Artist on Record and Best Album Design, with band leader Jason Johnson receiving the design honor. They also secured the People's Choice Award at the ceremony, voted by fans via telephone among nominees including Jann Arden, marking them as the only act to outperform the favored artist in any category. The following year, Feeding Like Butterflies received a nomination for Group Recording Artist of the Year at the Alberta Music Awards, underscoring their growing industry profile. At the 1995 ARIA Awards—held in Calgary and organized by the Alberta recording industry—they won Alternative Artist and Best Album Design for their album John in His Earthsuit, which blended psychedelic folk elements with innovative production. These honors highlighted the album's creative packaging and musical distinctiveness. A key milestone in their visibility came with the music video for "Mexicalli Mindbender," which achieved Top 10 rotation on MuchMusic, Canada's premier music channel, exposing their eclectic sound to a national audience. Critically, the band earned praise in national media for their innovative folk-rock fusion; the Edmonton Journal described their work as a "sonic smorgasbord... a compelling mix of traditional and experimental influences," while outlets like FFWD Weekly and the Toronto Star noted their boundary-pushing style in coverage of their releases and performances.
Discography
- John In His Earthsuit (1995)
- Siamese Tongue and Cat Singles (1996)
- World Travel Collection (1996)
- Inside the Medicine Man (1998)
References
- ↑ "Jason O. Johnson IMDB"
- ↑ "PHOBIES video game - by Smoking Gun Interactive"
- ↑ https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/05/27/splitfish-to-unveil-frevolutionx-system-at-e3-2009
- ↑ https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/06/25/splitfish-fragfx-ps3-review
- ↑ https://www.engadget.com/2011-09-16-splitfish-fragfx-shark-360-starts-shipping-for-your-first-person.html
- ↑ https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2010/11/10/hardware-review-splitfish-fragfx-shark-controller/
- ↑ https://www.gamesindustry.biz/dual-sfx-frag-pro-one-of-break-com-s-ces-2010-top-10-gadgets-catching-the-eye-of-usa-today-too
- ↑ "PULSE: Acoustic Discourse on Harmony and Chaos". Phabric, March 2013 By Chantele Theroux
- ↑ Howell, David (21 August 1993). Feeding Like a Butterfly, Edmonton Journal
- ↑ (24 July 1998). "Feeding Like Butterflies CD release", FFWD Weekly. Archived at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ (15 August 1993). Entertainment, Toronto Star ("Celtic folk-rock has made Feeding Like Butterflies Edmonton's hottest new band.")
- ↑ "Slate of discs a healthy sign for city bands". Edmonton Journal, Edmonton, Alberta, February 11, 1994, page: 39
- ↑ https://data2.archives.ca/pdf/pdf002/p000004136.pdf "Bruce Allen Talent Series"
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QMK9TiHi-I
- ↑ "Mercy - Aden collects half a dozen ARIAs". Edmonton Journal, Edmonton, Alberta, May 30, 1994, p. 12
- ↑ "Earthtones ace Arden in race for Alberta music awards". Edmonton Journal, Edmonton, Canada. February 23, 1995
- ↑ "FEEDING LIKE BUTTERFLIES: Inside the Medicine Man". Edmonton Journal,March 21, 1998, Page: 27
- ↑ https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/festivals/a-mini-peoples-history-to-celebrate-this-weekends-40th-annual-north-country-fair
- ↑ https://www.gamesindustry.biz/dual-sfx-frag-pro-one-of-break-com-s-ces-2010-top-10-gadgets-catching-the-eye-of-usa-today-too
- ↑ https://lastheplace.com/2008/01/18/access-hollywood-presents-stuff-you-must-golden-globes-gifting-suite/
- ↑ https://www.gamesindustry.biz/dual-sfx-frag-pro-one-of-break-com-s-ces-2010-top-10-gadgets-catching-the-eye-of-usa-today-too
- ↑ https://www.phobies.com
This article "Jason Orrin Johnson" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Jason Orrin Johnson. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
