Antoine Johnson receiving his dialysis
Photo courtesy: Antoine Johnson

By Kharisma McIlwaine

In 2023, Antoine Johnson was diagnosed with end-stage renal failure. Over the following year and a half, he managed the condition through dietary changes and a complete lifestyle overhaul. Then, in December 2025, an emergency hospital visit brought a sobering ultimatum: begin dialysis immediately or likely not survive the weekend.

According to the National Kidney Registry, nearly 90,000 people in the United States —including roughly 5,000 in the Greater Philadelphia region — are actively waiting for an organ transplant. Johnson now counts himself among them. Yet in the midst of this life-altering diagnosis, he chose to channel his experience into something larger than himself. He created “Find Me A Match,” a television show that follows the lives of those battling kidney disease and the caregivers who stand by them, while documenting their search for donors and the transplant process itself.

This story is deeply personal to me: Johnson and I share a friendship that spans more than two decades, and I now have the honor of co-producing the series alongside him, with Jake Mejias serving as videographer. Johnson spoke with the SUN about his decision to launch “Find Me A Match” and why raising awareness for those in need of living donors has become his mission.

Antoine Johnson on the set of “Find Me A Match.”
Photo courtesy: Antoine Johnson

When Johnson first began experiencing troubling symptoms, his mind immediately went to the illness that had afflicted other men in his family — prostate cancer. The actual diagnosis brought an unexpected mix of emotions that left him both relieved and devastated in equal measure.

“In my family, prostate cancer hits every other male, and I fall in line as next,” Johnson said. “Then at the same time, Mike (Jerrick) was going through what he was going through, and we were having similar symptoms. So, when he got diagnosed, I was, like, ‘Oh, yeah, this is what it is.’ I was relieved that it wasn’t that, but then also disappointed that it was renal failure.”

For Johnson, the diagnosis was not merely a shock — it was a shift that forced him to confront his own mortality head-on.

“I think the reality of dying changes perspective on life,” he said. “When I first got diagnosed, it wasn’t just a shock — it was like a three-piece. I had Ro (Roland Mendoza, Johnson’s partner) next to me, and I was trying to be strong in that moment, but I was already broken. I knew that it was bad, and I knew it was really bad when I sat with the nephrologist — this was the day after Thanksgiving. I knew it was going to be something horrible. I didn’t know — it was, like, if you don’t go now, you’re not going to make it over the weekend, but I knew it was bad. I think at that point, I just wanted to hold on for a transplant, you know? But then the reality was I wasn’t well enough to receive it, even in that moment. So, I had to do the dialysis in order to receive the transplant.”

From left: Antoine Johnson, Michelle Mclean, Jessie Slater
Photo courtesy: Antoine Johnson

Though Johnson has long been the Olivia Pope of his circle — private, poised, and always the fixer — this journey has required a new level of vulnerability. Johnson has made a conscious choice to let others in, allowing friends and family to support him as he navigates this journey.

“I feel like there are people in my life that I know need to have some sort of peace and comfort with this journey with me, and you’re one of those people,” Johnson said about longtime friends like me. “So having you when we’re doing the show, and even off camera, just having conversation with your mom, texting every day at 11:11 in the morning — those things mean a lot! I want to keep people feeling like we’re all on this journey together at the same time.”

Johnson made a pivotal decision early in his journey — he would not only navigate this experience himself but would also use his platform to amplify the voices of others battling renal failure who lacked the same opportunities.

“For me, it was accepting where I was. That’s number one. Then when I got to dialysis, I looked around and I saw all these people who were going through a lot and who didn’t have access. At that point, I had been on the news, and the radio, and was getting calls from national news outlets saying, ‘Hey, we want to share your story.’ Then there were people trying to beat others to the punch saying, ’Well, when you get a transplant, you’ve got to break it with us’ and that kind of thing. I felt like there were so many people in that space that didn’t have that opportunity, and I’m watching them suffer. One thing I can’t do is watch people suffer around me.”

“We’re all going to make it — that’s how I’ve always felt,” Johnson said. “So it was, like, ‘You know what? Let me do something that is going to help other people, because if I’m in this, I don’t want to be in it alone.’ I’ve never seen a renal community before, so I wanted to start building a community.”

Johnson knows firsthand that no one fights this battle alone. Behind every patient is a caregiver — often unseen and unspoken. Ensuring their stories are told has become a critical aspect of the show.

Top left: Kharisma McIlwaine, Jake Mejias; bottom left: La’Cinda Trotter, Richard Trotter, Antoine Johnson
Photo courtesy: Antoine Johnson

“I think for me, one of the biggest things that I needed to get out to the public is the story of the person who’s the caregiver,” Johnson said. “Every day at 4:30, rain or shine, Ro gets up and he takes me to dialysis, and when I’m bad, he holds my hand. When I cry, he’s the shoulder I cry on, and when things are really, really at their lowest point, he’s there. I think a lot of people have those individuals in their lives. We saw that with Kerry and Kevin (episode 4), we saw that with Nina and her father and her brother, sister, and their mom (episode 3), and we saw that with La’Cinda and her husband Richard (episode 2). So, there are stories from the caregiver that can lend to the person receiving that transplant because there are other people that are affected.”’

“I think when you see that, your heart opens up more,” Johnson said. “I also believe that therapy is important, and for a lot of these caregivers, they’ve never had a chance to express how they feel. When the patient — we’re going to use that word, the person looking for a donor — hears that side of the story, they change their perspective, and they become less agitated, more appreciative and more willing to work with everyone. I think that’s important. The show is starting to shape up to be more of the caregiver’s story that’s championing what’s happening with the individual.”

Johnson is proud of what “Find Me A Match” has become — a platform that has already helped connect people and built a community around a shared struggle. He is also frank about the need to challenge a broken system without alienating the very institutions that hold the power to help.

“I feel good about the show,” Johnson said. “I’m confident in the ability to help people find matches. I love the team that we have. You and Jake are amazing. I think that I want to elevate it more, but I don’t think right now is the time to do that. When I say elevate, I mean that from a perspective where it helps change the system. When we’re sitting around and people are telling their stories,what we’re finding is that the system is broken and it’s failing a lot of people. I don’t want to use this particular season or run of the show to bash the system that’s going to have to help people in the long run. So, there’s a balance — diplomacy, if you want to call it that — because it’s unfair. We know that when you advocate too much for yourself, sometimes it becomes very retaliatory, but still advocate for yourself — you have to! This is part of building the community.”

Johnson does not speak about the broken system abstractly — he has lived it. His experience is exactly why he created “Find Me A Match”– to ensure others do not fall through the same cracks.

“My mom has six boys — so, a basketball team and a substitute,” Johnson said. “When I first got diagnosed a couple years ago, two of my brothers signed up to give me their organ at the hospital where I was originally — I’ve now moved on. My brothers were my blood type and my matches, and no one from the hospital contacted them until a year and a half later. They did not contact them until this past Thanksgiving.”

“Another reason why I do this show is because people need to know that if you have siblings, go to them first — if you have family members, go to them, because someone in your family is more likely to be your blood type, especially if we have brothers and sisters,” he added. “Your chances are better with them than with a perfect stranger. Not knowing that breaks down a lot of things.”

For Johnson, the journey has been marked by both hope and disappointment — but his message to others navigating the same path remains unwavering. He is steadfast in his belief that humanity is capable of extraordinary generosity.

“I would say don’t give up and believe in humanity,” Johnson said. “That’s so hard, because I think that I’ve been in places where you’ve had a donor, then you lose a donor — but don’t give up. That’s the hardest thing— not giving up and believing that there is someone that can have a heart and give you an organ. Be encouraged.”

Be sure to follow Antoine Johnson on IG @antoinevjohnson. “Find Me a Match” airs every Saturday morning at 11:00 a.m. on Philly 57. Episodes are also available online at phillybeattv.com.