How to 'Make It' in the Drumming World

Hi again guys,

This has been on my mind for some time now and i just wanted to know how did all of these infamous drummers get were they are now . How does a good drummer get his 'Big break' and make it in the musical world because is it just pure luck that people are spotted at a young age and they are hand reered to be great musicians or is to be spotted in bands the way to go or going to a music college (what im thinkin of doing).

Thanks guys and discuss !

One word:

Luck.

... unless you're in a band, because if you're in a band then you (the drummer) don't really matter. It's all about the lead and the vocals.

For everyone, there will be a different story. Read the articles in Drum Magazine or Drumhead magazine and everyone of them tells the story of how they got where they are now, and the people responsible for the break, whether it be luck or the skills they had at the time.

Right place, right time... period.

Re any kind of 'career path' to being a professional musician, there's not one. You can go to school to learn - and I highly recommend knowing all you can - but the fact is, in the real world a music school diploma means little in terms of impressing anyone or getting gigs.

Bermuda

Hard work, lots of it.
Yes, it's true, the "right place, right time" thing does happen, but I think everyone can make your own luck through lots of hard work.

Practice your craft, make yourself the guy everyone wants to work.
Market yourself or your band.
Don't give up, and stay focused.

Luck has nothing to do with my career, the things I have done in my life or the things I am going to do.

Luck is the combination of preparation and opportunity.

bermuda said:

but the fact is, in the real world a music school diploma means little in terms of impressing anyone or getting gigs.

Click to expand...

As someone with a music degree, I'll second this. The experience you gain while in music school (the LONG hours of practicing, ensemble work, etc...) is much more valuable than the piece of paper you get at the end. However, if you want to teach (either on your own or at a school/drum shop), a degree increases your credibility and the parents' comfortableness with your abilities to teach their children the "right" way.

But, yeah, as for "making it", right place at the right time is the standard. You can increase your chances of being there at that time by getting out and playing as much as possible. The right place at the right time won't be while you're playing video games in your parents' basement...

Which drumming world do you want to be a part of? The drumset pop/rock set? That part is luck/knowing someone. There are many different aspects and opportunities in the percussion world. There are people who teach, work in the percussion industry, play in professional orchestras, write, work drum corps, broadway, the possibilities are endless. Why limit yourself to one tiny aspect of the percussion world?

bigd said:

Which drumming world do you want to be a part of? The drumset pop/rock set? That part is luck/knowing someone. There are many different aspects and opportunities in the percussion world. There are people who teach, work in the percussion industry, play in professional orchestras, write, work drum corps, broadway, the possibilities are endless. Why limit yourself to one tiny aspect of the percussion world?

Click to expand...

Well i have always admired these amazing session drummers who just are able to play anything under the sun, my idol is steve white, so that's what i would love to get into but as long as im playing drums in whatever profession i do ill be happy but regarding session drumming and that route, would i diploma help or again is it the 'luck' aspect of everything.

Tris

SharkyBait911 said:

regarding session drumming and that route, would i diploma help or again is it the 'luck' aspect of everything.

Click to expand...

There's not a lot of work for session musicians, certainly nothing like the glory days of the '60s & '70s. You've heard the expression 'it's who you know'? In many situations it's more like who knows you. Most session drummers get a foot in the door via someone they already know (who they've probably met at the right place & right time) who may call if they need a sub. It's much more than just putting your name out and saying "if you ever need a sub, let me know." These are relationships often built over time, and obviously it's crucial for the established drummer to be familiar with the aspiring drummer's capabilities, because both reputations are on the line. For example, I would never, ever recommend a drummer for a gig unless I knew for sure how he/she played, or unless their reputation was stellar (in which case I doubt anyone would be asking me.)

So the same would go for you. If a working drummer knows you, and how you play, there's a chance you could get a call to step-in on a session or gig. Once you're doing a job, the other players around you can hear how you play, assess your personality, etc. It's just one of many 'right place, right time' scenarios that you hope you can land in. There's no way to engineer or create those occasions, they happen when they happen, IF they happen. But you can raise your chances by doing whatever gigs you can, meeting players at jams, etc. A famous famous FAMOUS studio guitar player said "never say no, until you can't say yes."

As for a degree, the piece of paper isn't really going to be helpful in terms of getting work. Go to school to improve yourself, but don't expect that a degree will get you gigs, or that producers will be impressed. Believe it or not, most musicians don't want to use other musicians who are, shall we say... over-educated. That doesn't mean you shouldn't know all that you can, but it does mean you should be modest in terms of who you announce to that you have a degree. The problem is, many players who come out of the music schools have a tendency to overplay and demonstrate all of their tricks, and usually at the wrong times. So, a lot of players looking for a drummer (or guitar player or whatever) will skip over the ads that say MI graduate, etc.

Let's put it this way... Terry Bozzio didn't get the Zappa drum chair because he was a Berklee grad. He had to audition just like everyone else.

Bermuda

I think the key for me personally was to start hanging around with professionals. The minute I started hanging out with professionals everything changed for me. I would just pick their brains and buy them coffee and ask for advice and that networking helped me the most. It was hard to do at first because I didn't want to seem like a "groupie/hanger-on" type. If you are genuine most musicians are nice guys and like to help out. They also LOVE to talk about themselves so it isn't that hard.

A new thing I'm trying this year is to follow through on everything. If I have an idea to do something as long as it's reasonable i'm going to try to follow through on it. Really simple stuff like I want to practice independence today, or I really need to hang up some flyers for an upcoming show. It's really starting to pay off in weird ways. I got asked to sing bass harmonies on a vocal track last week and I was kind of wavering on it because it didn't pay and I'm not trying to be a singer, but then I remembered to follow through on things. I ended up meeting 3 different musicians that I knew of, but they didn't know about me, not to mention getting to record in a pro studio and keeping my face fresh with the producer. Its just a little simple thing like that turns into more gigs.

The most important thing is your musicianship. Showing up on time, never canceling a gig, being dependable, enthusiastic, supportive. taking criticism well. adjusting to any situation.

Really the advice most drummers will give you is the same kind of general advice that motivational speakers give, or business success books.

This is what worked for me, I know there are drummers that hitched their wagon to a bright star and blew up, but that never happened to me.

As someone clawing his way to the middle I think you have to also do something unique enough to make you stick out in a crowd and is unique pretty much to you and you alone.

Then you cultivate your endorsement stuff from the ground up and take your time about it. Interestingly enough I think that includes defending the tiny place you've established for yourself on the Internet, especially regarding those who would intentionally alter the view you have set up as your own for other reasons, that mostly include people who are mad about you have having some 2 centimeter ad in a drum magazine, when they didn't even attempt to do the work required for that.

That's often difficult in an age where anyone can say anything on the Internet and their words look the same on screen as yours. People really do read troll garbage, and competition is just too tight. Plus I sincerely believe that companies like guys who stand up for themselves in an equitable manner because they also assume you won't sell out their product at the first available opportunity, even if you're endorsing that same product. And believe me, a lot of guys do.

It's also been my observation that the people who lecture others about the negativity of this counter punch strategy are people who don't have endorsements themselves while still others go out of their way to tell as many people as possible that you don't deserve what you have. Just a couple of days ago there was a forum guy with issues who pmd me regarding my apparent bitterness, when all that was just a tactic to draw attention away from his own silly problems. In all honesty I can count on one hand the number of times I've cared what someone said about me on the Internet. With that said, I'm still not going to allow a whole lot of foolishness to stand, because if you allow the wrong stuff to continually show up in published form it becomes a lie that is agreed upon. And yeah this really can hurt you, especially in this current Internet enviornment where any and everyone can be an anonymous e critic.

Then you go to a place that lets you do a whole lot of STRUCTURED uninterrupted practice. For me that was the one year program at AIM. I know a lot of people have been down on MI and AIM type places, but I've known few of those critics ever walk through the door of one of them to really know. And yes you really do have to have a teacher. Also remember that these teacher people are often your first decent reference into the real world.

Then you find a place where you can work out your stuff in a relatively no pressure place. That's probably the hardest part of this. For me it's here in Eastern Europe, where things aren't as glam, but gigs are everywhere. Most important I make it a point to be around as many musicians better than me as possible. Weaker players are nice friends, but in music they will hold you back.

Finally, learn how to write your own words. The best person to sell your product is you. Forums really helped me with this one.

Then you wait your turn and hope for the best.

All this takes time. If you want a quick fix then good luck but you will fail.