New Mexico

Heart of New Mexico: Johnny James

Published

1 year ago

July 31, 2024

His videos are not always safe for work, and many are not safe for a TV news broadcast. His connection with New Mexicans is undeniable. Johnny James has struck gold in the internet age of online attention.

“I’m on the road enough, so I realize how people don’t understand our gente and our culture,” James said. “Well, if they don’t understand it, then let’s just show them all the way.”

James first plan was to become a rapper. He said he hustled to sell albums, travelled the country, and while hip hop is still his passion, he’s found a new voice with humor.

Describing himself as part conqueror, part conquered, in relation to his connections to his Hispanic and Native American cultures. Describing his affinity for New Mexican cuisine, or his relatable experiences at Albuquerque gas stations.

Most of the time while trying to make you laugh.

“It just cracked off,” James said of the fast internet success.

His connection to New Mexicans, he said, extends beyond Albuquerque. He grew up in the small town of San Fidel, Grants, and the Acoma and Laguna Pueblos is where he spent much of his childhood.

In the shadow of Ray’s Bar, named after his grandfather, Johnny was molded into who is today by his mom and dad.

He said his family of five lived in a two-bedroom trailer “until the bottom fell out underneath us.” The closeness of family shaped him as much as addiction.

“My dad was probably the highest functioning addict I’ve ever met in my entire life,” James said.

He recalled the first time trying to help bring someone back from an overdose when he was 6 years old. The opioid crisis had a grip on his family.

“I’ll be 100% transparent. I’m an addict, too, right?” James said. “I was able to be self-aware enough to know when I was so close to, like, I’ve looked over that edge a whole bunch of times, bro.”

James said he’s like, “Neo in the Matrix,” with how many bullets he’s dodged. His openness about his former occupation as a drug dealer leads you to wonder if he meant that figuratively.

“Even though my dad did do what my dad did, he was there. I had a dad,” James said. “You know, how many people – or how many of my friends – that didn’t have a dad?”

James said even though his dad thought his plan of becoming a famous Hispanic rapper was, “bonkers,” he supported him. Supported him until he died of a heroin overdose in 2017.

“It was really hard on my mom. It was hard on all of us because we’re so close,” James said.

Hard lessons he carries with him as he said he’s trying to be the best father to his four sons. Now his internet fame is a noticed in real life.

On the one street through San Fidel, to Old Route 66, people stop James everywhere. He stops and considers himself grateful for the attention.

“If I lead from the front and I lead by example again, I’m one man. I’m not going to save the world,” James said. “But if I could change a little bit, if I could change a couple of people, then it was worth it.”

He’s hoping to use his reach to uplift New Mexicans and throw his support behind people and causes that could make a difference. James helped raise over $78,000 for Ruidoso Wildfire relief. He still wants to reach his goal of $100,000.

His values seem to resonate through the cell phones that have elevated his status across the state.

Was it all a happy accident? Depends on who you ask.

“I always say it accidentally fell in my lap. But people say it might not have been an accident,” James said. “I’ll let them decide.”

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Related Topics:Featured Heart of New Mexico Ryan Laughlin

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New Mexico

New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

Published

2 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

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New Mexico

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

Published

14 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

The governor sets the agenda for the session, including for the budget, so here is what they are looking at so far.

SANTA FE, N.M. — As the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature is set to begin Jan. 20, lawmakers have already filed dozens of bills.

Bills include prohibiting book bans at public libraries and protections against AI, specifically the distribution of sensitive and “Deepfake” images

Juvenile justice reform is, again, a hot topic. House Bill 25 would allow access to someone’s juvenile records during a background check if they’re trying to buy a gun.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sets the agenda and puts forth the proposed budget lawmakers will address during the session. The governor is calling for lawmakers to take up an $11.3 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which is up 4.6% from current spending levels.

Where would that money go? More than $600 million would go to universal free child care. Meanwhile, more than $200 million would go to health care and to protect against federal funding cuts.

There is also $65 million for statewide affordable housing initiatives and $19 million for public safety.

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New Mexico

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Paul Gessing, Rio Grande Foundation
| Las Cruces Sun-News

After years of failure to land a “big fish” business for New Mexico’s economy (or effectively use the oil and gas revenues to grow the economy) Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham with the help of her Economic Development Secretary Rob Black have lured no fewer than three large data centers to New Mexico. These data centers are being built to serve the booming world of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and they will have profound impacts on New Mexico.

It is our view that having these data centers locate in New Mexico is better than having them locate elsewhere. While we have many differences of opinion with this governor, we are pleased to see her get serious about growing and diversifying New Mexico’s oil-dependent economy albeit quite late in her second term.

Sadly, the governor and legislature have chosen not to use broad based economic reforms like deregulation or tax cuts to improve New Mexico’s competitiveness. But, with the failure of her “preferred” economic development “wins” like Maxeon and Ebon solar both of which the governor announced a few years ago, but haven’t panned out, the focus on a more realistic strategy is welcome and long overdue.

Currently, three new data centers are slated to be built in New Mexico:

Oracle’s Project Jupiter in Santa Teresa with an investment of $165 billion.
Project Zenith slated to be built in Roswell amounts to a $11.7 billion investment.
New Era Energy & Digital, Inc. While the overall investment is unclear, the energy requirement is the largest of the three at 7 gigawatts (that’s seven times the power used by the City of San Francisco).

What is a data center? Basically, they are the real-world computing infrastructure that makes up the Internet. The rise of AI requires vast new computing power. It is critical that these facilities have uninterrupted electricity.

That electricity is going to be largely generated by traditional sources like natural gas and possibly nuclear. That contravenes New Mexico’s Energy Transition Act of 2019 which was adopted by this Gov. and many of the legislators still in office. Under the Act electrical power emissions are supposed to be eliminated in a few years.

With the amount of money being invested in these facilities and the simple fact that wind and solar and other “renewable” energy sources aren’t going to get the job done. In 2025 the Legislature passed and MLG signed HB 93 which allows for the creation of “microgrids” that won’t tax the grid and make our electricity more expensive, but the ETA will have to be amended or ignored to provide enough electricity for these data centers. There’s no other option.

New Mexicans have every right to wonder why powerful friends of the governor can set up their own natural gas microgrids while the rest of us face rising costs and decreased reliability from so-called “renewables.” Don’t get me wrong, having these data centers come to New Mexico is an economic boon.

But it comes tempered with massive subsidies including a 30-year property tax exemption and up to $165 billion in industrial revenue bonds. New Mexico is ideally suited as a destination for these data centers with its favorable climate and lack of natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. We shouldn’t be giving away such massive subsidies.

Welcoming the data center boom to New Mexico better than rejecting them and pushing them to locate in other states. There is no way to avoid CO2 emissions whether they happen here or somewhere else. But, there are questions about both the electricity demand and subsidies that must be addressed as New Mexico’s data center boom begins.

What will the Legislature, radical environmental groups, and future governors of our state do to hinder (or help) bring these data centers to our State? That is an open question that depends heavily on upcoming statewide elections. It is important that New Mexicans understand and appreciate these complicated issues.

Paul Gessing is president of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility

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