KUNG FU HIP HOP, DA MARTIAL ELEMENTS AND MARCO JOHNSON

BEING ONE OF THE TOP MARTIAL ARTISTS IN THE WORLD SOUNDS LIKE A DREAM COME TRUE FOR ANY PRACTITIONER OF KUNG FU, KARATE OR TAEKWONDO. YET THAT ALONE ISN’T ALWAYS ENOUGH TO BRING SUCCESS OUTSIDE OF MARTIAL ARTS SCHOOLS AND TOURNAMENT VENUES.

- MARK JACOBS

In the early 2000s, Marco Johnson was one of the best tournament competitors out there. The son of Black Belt Hall of Famer Willie “The Bam” Johnson, Marco had won everything in sight as a junior. He was undefeated in empty-hand forms for two years. He earned a rare “triple crown” after being ranked in weapons, forms and fighting the same year. He was named best all-around competitor by the North American Sport Karate Association.

Marco seemed poised to take over the tournament world. Yet just a few years later, he was living out of his car.

Marco’s up-and-down professional life mirrored his personal life while growing up in Baltimore. His father was a legendary Chinese-martial arts expert and one of the top competitors of the 1980s and ’90s. Naturally, he groomed his son to be a martial artist almost from birth.

“I got my white belt when I was less than a year old,” Marco said. Yet his father had his own demons to battle, having gotten involved in drug dealing, which ultimately sent him to jail. Although Marco admired his father and wanted to follow in his footsteps, the youth learned in the most difficult manner possible to stay away from that world.

When his father was released from prison, Marco went to live with him. Willie had spent time practicing in China, at one point training at the famed Shaolin Temple. Consequently, his method of parenting sometimes reflected that stern background.