2026 Women Of Live: Keeyah Johnson

Keeyah Johnson
All Things PR & Events | Road Manager / Live Events

BIZ PHILOSOPHY | “Calm is power. …. If I do my job correctly, the artist can focus on artistry and the audience can focus on experience. My responsibility is to protect that space.”

Keeyah Johnson has been Usher’s road manager since 2022, including working on his 2024 Super Bowl Halftime Show in Las Vegas. The entertainer is the one who straps on roller skates at many concerts, but Johnson is helping execute the high-level twists and turns behind the scenes.

“Touring internationally is not simply moving a show city to city,” she says. “It is navigating customs and freight timelines, visas and compliance, union labor rules, venue politics, security protocols, time zone fatigue and crew morale all at once. Every day presents variables that can shift within minutes.”

Johnson made more space for mentorship this past year, and assumed a role as a caregiver to her mother.

“One of my proudest accomplishments was sustaining excellence across an 80-plus show global run while intentionally mentoring young women on tour. I brought them into routing discussions. I explained settlement breakdowns. I walked them through why certain operational decisions are made under pressure. Too often, young professionals only see their silo. I wanted them to see the ecosystem.

“Equally significant was doing this while serving as a caregiver to my aging parent battling ovarian cancer. There were moments when I would step off a production call and immediately step into hospital logistics. That duality reshaped my definition of strength. It deepened my empathy as a leader and sharpened my focus on what truly matters.”

Johnson is a brilliant long-term thinker with a vision about the future for women in the live music industry.

“Women are no longer asking for entry,” she asserts. “We are defining operational excellence. I see women stepping into roles that were historically male dominated: road management, production management, venue operations and executive leadership. However, representation at the highest ownership and strategic levels still needs growth. The opportunity lies in succession planning, structured mentorship and eliminating gatekeeping culture. … Women must not only be present but supported. The next evolution is creating systems where women thrive long term, not just survive short term.”