Cedrick Johnson is a Dallas, Texas native, a graduate of Dallas Skyline Magnet School in Dallas, Texas, and a University of North Texas at Dallas alumnus who majored in Communications and Media Technology. He is a retired United States Navy Chief Petty Officer, media entrepreneur, community advocate, Ballroom leader, mentor, and founder of The TOC Foundation. His leadership philosophy has been shaped by more than two decades of military service and years of direct community engagement.

Following a 21-year career of active-duty service in the United States Navy, Johnson has continued a life centered around service, leadership, mentorship, and community development. During his career he served in the rates of Electrical Engineer, Law Enforcement Specialist, and Navy Career Counselor for Navy Recruiting Command.

His military recognitions include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy Achievement Medals, Community Volunteer Service Medals, and the Humanitarian Service Medal, along with a plethora of other qualifications and service awards earned throughout his career.

Within Ballroom culture, Johnson is widely known as Legendary Jrock Ebony. He joined mainstream Ballroom in 2008 and played a major role in the growth and development of both Kiki and Mainstream ballroom, and is affectionately called the Oracle as a founder of the Gulf Coast Kiki and Mainstream Scene. His community work has helped use Ballroom not simply as entertainment, but as an avenue for mentorship, cultural expression, community building, education, and connection to resources.

Johnson played a major role in the development and expansion of Vogue Academy in Dallas and the growth of the Gulf Coast Kiki and Mainstream Ballroom community. Through years of community engagement, young people and adults have been provided spaces to learn Ballroom, develop confidence, build chosen family, receive mentorship, and connect with resources and opportunities.

The Vogue Academy program has been reported on by Dallas Voice, The Dallas Morning News, WFAA Channel 8, and other news outlets throughout Texas. Program participants have competed on HBO Max’s Legendary, where one of his students was part of the $100K winning team from the Imperial House of Balmain. The program has also sustained more than nine years of partnership with the Dallas Museum of Art, presenting live exhibitions inside the museum so the world can experience the young adults who carry this culture forward.

His work has also extended into media through The TensOrChops Television Network, which documents Ballroom culture while helping amplify conversations involving health, education, housing, employment, stigma, mental health, community resources, and the experiences of Black, Brown, and LGBTQIA+ communities.

Johnson founded TensOrChops Entertainment LLC in 2022 and serves as its CEO. In November 2023, TensOrChops Entertainment LLC was named a recipient of the Human Rights Campaign and SHOWTIME® “Queer to Stay: An LGBTQ+ Business Preservation Initiative” award — one of only 25 LGBTQ+ small businesses across 19 states selected that year, and the recipient representing Ferris, Texas. The funding supports filming and sharing the stories of LGBTQ+ people of color thriving with HIV and other health disparities.

The TOC Foundation represents the next chapter of that work: building sustainable infrastructure around years of grassroots service and creating stronger bridges between culture, community organizations, resources, and opportunity.