MIDDLEBURG, Virginia — On an outdoor stage at her 350-acre Salamander Middleburg Resort in Virginia, BET cofounder Sheila Crump Johnson jams to go-go music spun by celebrity DJ D-Nice.
Hundreds of partiers in front of the stage bop and sway along with her in between bites of gourmet brisket sandwiches, mouth-watering chicken wings and Caribbean-inspired shrimp. Guests sip Virginia-born spirits and wines during the fourth year of what Johnson bills as “Kwame Onwuachi Presents The Family Reunion.”
Johnson and renowned chef and restaurateur Onwuachi launched the event in 2021 to celebrate diversity in the culinary and hospitality communities. Since then, the four-day event has become a pilgrimage for the mostly Black attendees who travel from as far as California, Massachusetts, Michigan, Florida, and Texas. At the annual gathering, they get to mingle with celebrity chefs and cookbook authors such as Carla Hall, Jessica Harris, Alexander Smalls, and dozens of up-and-coming culinary artists.
“It’s about us, the culture of us,” Carla Hall said. “It’s like a party, the music that is played, the food that is served, the camaraderie, the relationship with each other versus transactional (relationships). The reason that you come as friends and leave as family is because that’s who we are as a culture and as a people. And I love it when people outside of our culture come and they’re like, ‘OMG, this is unlike anything else I’ve ever seen.’ ”
Guest Kimberly Davis of Nashville, Tennessee, said the event makes her feel more welcome than does her predominantly white neighborhood.
“Coming here makes me feel safe and helps balance out all of the unsafety I feel every day,” she said. “My husband surprised me by packing all of my cookbooks (26) to be signed by chefs (who are here).”
Seeing Johnson laughing, posing for selfies and mingling among guests during this year’s family reunion from Aug. 15-18 seems far removed from the decades of darkness that engulfed her as she helped build Black Entertainment Television with her now ex-husband, Robert “Bob” Johnson.
One year ago, Sheila Johnson’s autobiography, “Walk Through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph,” provided readers with searing details of her life. In the book, the 74-year-old Johnson reveals hardships she faced as a teenager when her father, a neurosurgeon, walked out on the family. Johnson had to find work to support herself, her mother and her younger brother. She scrubbed floors at a roach-infested JCPenney department store to put food on the family’s table.
Johnson, who became the first Black woman billionaire after BET was sold to Paramount’s predecessor, Viacom, in 2001 for $3 billion, shared her story on Aug. 17 during one of the family reunion’s packed panel sessions. Her audience included creatives, corporate executives, educators, entrepreneurs, legal and medical professionals seeking to grow and sustain their businesses.
Much of her advice stemmed from personal experiences and bad decisions.
In candid conversations with Nancy Giles, an actress and CBS News commentator, and Gigi Dixon, a Wells Fargo executive, Johnson described circumstances that led her to divorce Bob Johnson, BET’s cofounder. She met and married Johnson while they were in college at the University of Illinois.
Throughout their 33-year union, Johnson endured her husband’s numerous affairs and verbal abuse, she said. Just as she had helped support her family after being deserted by her father, her work as a violinist and teacher helped pay the bills at a then-fledgling BET, she shared.
When Johnson eventually joined the growing company as an employee, she rarely received credit for its successes, such as the popular program “Teen Summit,” she told the audience. Bob Johnson eventually fired her from BET, she writes in her book.
Still, she persevered.
Money from her divorce provided a fresh start. However, adversity soon struck again; as she devised plans to invest and spend her wealth, she was shocked when her longtime bank refused to take her seriously. As a result, Johnson withdrew all of her money from that bank and moved it to another financial institution.
By then, Johnson was living in Middleburg, a picturesque town in Loudoun County, Virginia’s horse country, about an hour’s drive from Washington, D.C.
Johnson ultimately overcame the town’s opposition to her building the Salamander resort in Middleburg, which was the launching pad for similar acquisitions and properties in Washington, D.C., Charleston, South Carolina, Anguilla, Jamaica and Aspen, Colorado.
For the second year in a row, USA Today has named Johnson’s hotel and hospitality portfolio as the Best Luxury Hotel Brand: Salamander Collection.
“The Salamander Collection offers one-of-a-kind getaways. Authenticity is always a priority, especially regarding cuisine and fine dining, wellness, and the overall experience of each stay,” according to USA Today. “In addition to luxury amenities, guests can enjoy unique adventures, equestrian events, and golf.”
Johnson takes pride in the USA Today recognition, along with other awards that laud her work.
Yet, she cautions that securing such acclaim means to “not take anything for granted” because too many people in authority positions still “don’t take us (Black people and Black women) seriously.”
To counter such attitudes, Johnson advises business owners to hire smart people, learn to set boundaries and protect themselves, create a value system and have standards.
Johnson’s parting advice was gleaned from her mother, she said.
“Don’t ever say you can’t.”
Sheila Johnson’s “Walk Through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph” comes out in paperback in September 2024.
