FAQs
How did you get the name "Johnny Showtime"?
It started around 1998 when I was in Liquid Soul. One day, MC the Dirty MF looked at me and said, "Johnny Showtime.... I like it!" I had no idea what he was talking about. But apparently everyone in the band had been calling me that for months, and Dirty was even announcing me on stage that way. I hadn't noticed.
Some of the Liquid Soul guys came up with the name while eating at Denny's. The place-mats were advertising the Harlem Globetrotters, and one of the players was nicknamed Showtime.
Initially I thought the name was cheesy and didn't really suit me. But people seemed to like calling me Johnny Showtime, and the name stuck. After it was plugged in my infamous Lotto Ad, it became public knowledge and there was no turning back.
Are you the only Johnny Showtime?
I am the one-and-only "real" Johnny Showtime, and there is no substitute. However, a google search reveals that others have tried to cramp my style. Other Johnny Showtimes include a dirt-bike racer, a wrestler and a horse.
How should I address you, Mr. Showtime?
How about "His Showtimeness." Just kidding. Most musicians simply call me "Showtime." Some also call me Johnny, although I was never a Johnny before I became a Johnny Showtime. When in doubt, you can't go wrong with "John."
Friends and acquaintances I met in the early '90s still remember me by a previous nickname, JJ. I don't mind if they keep calling that, I just don't like when they introduce me to new people that way. It causes confusion around people who don't know me as JJ. My wife, for example.
For CD credits: List me as Johnny "Showtime" Janowiak, or Johnny Showtime, or John Janowiak, or whatever you think will get throngs of screaming teenagers flocking to the record stores.
Do you still play in Liquid Soul?
Nope! I actually haven't played a note with Liquid Soul since January 2003. People still associate me with the band, I guess, because I played in it for eight years. It was fun being part of the group during its heyday... getting a Grammy nomination, playing for Dennis Rodman and Bill Clinton, opening for Sting and all of that. But I've moved on to other things.
Do you give trombone lessons?
Occasionally, but I'm not a teacher per se. If I were to give any advice to budding trombonists, it would be to keep on doing the rudimentary stuff that no one wants to be told to do.... like playing long tones and lip slurs every day to build your chops and improve your tone, and practicing scales and patterns to improve your facility. If you need help learning any of that stuff, then sure, I'll give you a lesson.
Just don't ask me....
How can I play funk trombone solos just like Johnny Showtime?
Listen to some Fred Wesley and try to cop some of his licks! And pick up on his awesome feel. I'm really a "play it by ear" guy and not any kind of music theorist, so unfortunately I can't give you a technical blueprint. The most I can say for myself is that I enjoy playing, and I've kept at it for a very long time.
