Rabbi Johnny grew up in Toronto, Canada in a French Sephardic family, the eldest of six boys. The schooling system and community prompted him and his family to take on greater Jewish observance, eventually leading Rabbi Johnny to enroll in a full-time Yeshiva in Jerusalem known as Kol Torah.
In 2010, after studying in the Yeshiva for 5 years, Rabbi Johnny married Devorah Lugassy, also from Toronto, after which the couple decided to move back to Israel and invest the first few years of their married life into Jewish learning and education. Upon culminating an intensive 3 years of Rabbinical study at the Jerusalem Kollel led by Rabbi Yitzchak Berkovits, Rabbi Johnny received his Rabbinic ordination and was offered a job in Houston, Texas to serve as Assistant Rabbi for Congregation Beth Rambam, and Director of Young Professional Outreach for TORCH. After 5 and a half years at TORCH, Rabbi Johnny transitioned into a full-time marketing and outreach position with Congregation Beth Rambam and founded J-HYPE - Jewish Houston Young Professionals Experience.