A Letter from Chandler Johnson

January 20, 2025

Dear friends,

My name is Chandler Johnson. I am the creator and curator of Pick Progress. If you’re reading this, it’s the beginning of the end.

For nearly six years, with the help of some dedicated, brilliant individuals and the contributions of equally amazingly talented people from around the world, this beautiful, multifaceted project has grown into an otherworldly experience. But the time has come for Pick Progress to walk towards the horizon line.

When I first started on this endeavor, I had just returned from Africa. I was looking to give back to my culture. I had spent years prior with my head down in textbooks and assignments, trying to find work and build a career, so much so that I didn’t have time to look up and face my identity in America. Pick Progress was my mirror to look at all the reflections, the exquisite and sometimes painful shades of being Black.

For the most part, we have seen some vibrant shades in this project. But just like its given name, Pick Progress was never meant to be the endpoint; it was hopefully a helpful motivator to something better. It wasn’t meant to fix everything… or even anything; it was meant to showcase that there are people like you who are choosing progress every day, and may that be this project’s legacy.

So, it’s time for me to start letting go. As a creative, I’ve never closed a project of this magnitude on my terms, and I want Pick Progress to go out on top. At the same time, Pick Progress has unfinished business, meaning that this project is not ending extremely soon but a year from now, in January 2026. You might be wondering why I’m announcing this a year in advance. For two reasons: If I don’t give myself a specific but reasonable date, this project will go on forever. I know me. Also, this project has been a part of my soul for many moons, and I need time to let go and say goodbye. This is truly a hard decision.

But there’s no need for tears right now. There’s still ample time before the waterworks and to thank people properly. So get ready for one more spectacular year of Pick Progress before we sunset this project. This year, we will try to go hard in the paint with some callbacks and new things. It’s going to be great. I gotta go… But I want to thank you all for following this journey. Thank you for giving so much to this project. I truly appreciate it. You have no idea what you and this project have meant to me.

Take care out there.
Sincerely,

Chandler Johnson

P.S. Progress will always be a part of who I am, regardless of the end of this project. I will always be with you and looking forward.