The Drum Shuffle

Dude! On episode 111, Jamie is joined by the phenomenal Harry Miree to discuss his path to becoming one of Nashville's busiest session drummers, touring 160 days per year, and having a YouTube channel with millions of views. Harry is an open book sharing his love for drumming and explaining his approach to his extremely busy career. He is truly one of the wittiest and hilarious guys you'll ever meet and he does not disappoint in this wide-ranging and in-depth conversation. You do not want to miss this episode. Dude!

On episode 110, Marc Pisapia joins Jamie for an in-depth conversation on his career as an in-demand, first-call drummer. Marc's discography includes albums with k.d. lang, Kelly Willis, Chuck Prophet, David Mead, and Josh Rouse. Marc provides great insight and advice on having a successful career as a drummer in an ultra-competitive industry.

Brian Setzer, Five For Fighting, The BoDeans, and The Honey Dogs are all names on Noah Levy's impressive drumming resume. On episode 109, Noah joins Jamie for an in-depth conversation about his career, adapting to new musical situations, and how he has stayed busy for the last 20-plus years. The entire interview is full of great advice and tips for working musicians and Noah's humor and kindness are on full display for the drumming community.

Michael Bland is a drummer's drummer. He has been playing professionally since his teens. During one of his early gigs, Prince stopped in and was so blown away, he offered Michael a job before he was old enough to legally purchase a beer. Let that sink in. Since those days, Michael has played with countless artists and for the past few years he has been a member of Soul Asylum. On episode 108, Michael joins Jamie to discuss his early years, his time with the legendary Prince, and the current state of the music industry and society. This is a fantastic interview with a superb drummer and human being.

Our good friend, Kevin Charney, stops by to give us a quick update on what's going on in his life and to tell us about his new radio show, Supertwang, on Gimme Country. We talk about the shutdown of the music and arts industry, building drums during the pandemic, and almost everything else that comes to mind. This episode is a typical "hang" that occurs all the time between drummers. Listen in as Kevin and Jamie talk about life and learn more about Kevin's awesome new radio show.

On Episode 107, Jamie is joined by Dave Kirby of The Belfast Cowboys to discuss his drumming throughout the years. Dave is a native of Minnesota and grew up in a musical family. Like many working musicians, early in his career Dave was forced to choose between a "regular job" and chasing his musical dreams. Dave is one of the few that managed to be extremely successful in both the business world and the musical world. In this episode Dave helps us explore how to create a balance between those two worlds and shares some great advice for everyone.

Shirazette Tinnin grew up in North Carolina and started drumming at a young age. She honed her early musical chops at church and in her public school system. A proud graduate of Appalachian State University, she now resides in New York and continues making waves in the NYC jazz scene. Her new album, Sonic Wallpaper Vol 1, The Cards That Life Can Deal showcases her drumming, composing, and arranging chops. On episode 106, Shirazette joins Jamie to discuss her drumming education, influences, and stories that inspired Sonic Wallpaper...She is a rising star in the jazz scene for good reason. She is a brilliant young drummer that everyone should know.

On episode 105, Jamie is joined by Rajiv Jayaweera to discuss his new release, Pistils, which is hot off the presses. Originally from London, Rajiv moved to Australia as a youngster and was surrounded by music from an early age. After college, he worked and toured the Australian circuit before relocating to New York to pursue every Jazz drummer's dream. After several years of composing original material and playing the NYC scene, Rajiv recorded and released his brilliant new album just last week. Rajiv and Jamie discuss his approach to writing and tracking the album, his eastern-influenced drumming, and much, much more in this informative interview.

Jon Foster is an up-and-coming young drummer currently splitting his time between Toronto and Los Angeles. He has already completed tours of North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia with a wide-range of artists including Justin Nozuka, Jeremie Albino, and Tanika Charles. He is also creating amazing drumming content on YouTube that is very helpful to all drummers. Jon is a drummer to watch over the next few years, for sure. Please enjoy getting to know more about him in this great interview. 

Billy Sullivan should be a perfect example for all drummers on launching, maintaining, and growing a career in the music industry. A self-proclaimed angry kid, Billy was drawn to the drums as a way to release aggression. What he didn't know as a kid, was that his drumming would take him from his hometown of Long Island, New York to Los Angeles, where he would become highly successful in the world of film scoring. Billy's credits are far too numerous to list, but he has been a part of many highly successful films' soundtracks. On episode 103, Billy and Jamie explore his background in drumming, his move to L.A., sleeping on Steve Vai's floor, and ultimately building Cloverland Studios where he works today. Billy's story is one of persistence, determination, hard work, and a small dash of good luck. Again, his story should serve as blueprint for all musicians on what it takes to 'make it' and 'keep it' in the music world. You don't want to miss this one.