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Podcast - The 8020 Drummer: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Nathaniel Smith - drummer, writer, entrepreneur
The first and only podcast devoted to helping you become great at the drums by asking the people who should know - great drummers. And unlike other podcasts, I actually play drums with these guys and record it so you can listen as we talk.
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- Sep 23, 2026
Gavin Harrison - I'm an Ideas Guy
Get the podcast early, and get a FREE drum course First Name * Email * HOOK IT UP When I first started the podcast, back in 2023, I had a shortlist of drummers I wanted to interview. Richard Spaven Thomas Pridgen, Nate Wood, a few others, and today’s guest.I was a late-convert to Gavin, but I understood immediately what my students saw. And ironically, if he’d followed the lowest-risk path by continuing to do studio work, he may never have made the career-change that’s the primary reason most of us have heard of him: joining Porcupine Tree.I didn’t even have to ask Gavin about that, because he volunteered it during one of our exchanges: studio work, for Gavin, was a steady paycheck. It was good, predictable conditions. It was mostly setting his own schedule. Band life, at the scale Porcupine Tree was at in those days, meant van life. Schlepping from one club to another. Late nights. Less money. No guarantee anything would work out.And yet…it was never even a question the first time Gavin heard them and jammed with them. And of course the rest is history. Between Porcupine Tree and his more recent music with Pinapple Thief, Gavin not only cemented his own reputation, but participated directly in the creation and performance of records worth of music people are going to remember for generations to come.Ever the practice nerd, I also wanted to hear how Gavin approaches creative work on the drums, in those weeks between tours and learning/writing music for bands. That question sparked an interesting (to me) exchange about utilizing our subconscious to retrieve ideas, then (as he does, and you should 100% listen to him) recording/writing them down, as an alternative to “top down” planned practice routines.This, in turn, sparked a meta-convo about the journey within oneself to find creative direction, and a wry observation that if Gavin’s “cave” period (when he used to do mammoth overnight practice sessions) had occurred after the invention of smart-phones, he possibly wouldn’t have become the player he is today.I hope you enjoy this exchange with the great Gavin as much as I did.
- Sep 3, 2026
Danny McGonegle - I Decided to Give Myself a Chance
Get the podcast early, and get a FREE drum course First Name * Email * HOOK IT UP There’s an instagram reel of today’s guest playing at Smalls. The description, next to a video of a blistering solo, says “I used to have to be drunk to play at Smalls.”That single sentence encapsulates almost everything he wants you to know about his story.First, that now he’s by-all-measures a prodigious jazz drum talent.Second, that a surprisingly short time ago he had crippling performance anxiety.Third, that that anxiety led to alcoholism at a young age.Fourth, that he’s now sober, and has poured all that anxiety into making himself the player and social media star he is.Danny brings up his journey to sobriety in the first sentence of his interview. And, in person, he was not what I expected from his social media.On Instagram, Danny presents as a macho “gym bro”, obsessed with 400 bpm ride cymbal, even if many of his videos are satirical and self-referential. I was fully expecting a Friday Night Lights character.In person, he’s warm, humble, self-deprecating, and unironically excited to talk about music. And talk we did. Whether about overcoming social anxiety, the minutiae of practice routines, the role of the left hand, great jazz drummers we both admire, at what stage players should get on social media, or how music is subjective except somehow Tony Williams, we got into it.I’ve often thought about building a musical career in modern times as at least 3 axes: musical ability, virality, and integrity, with the last 2 seemingly slightly in conflict, and the first somewhat allowing for the third. (Trust me, I’m making a video on this.)In a world in which people sing jazz solos while bouncing on a pogo stick, dress up as medieval monsters, or actually become “what my friends think a jazz drummer is” for follows, Danny’s charted a high-integrity course: showing what a “real” modern jazz drummer can be, with some whimsey, humor, and wit, and always putting the music first.If you’ve ever struggled with performance anxiety or motivation, or just wanted to see “behind the curtain” of one of the most fascinating young jazz drummers, you’ll enjoy this interview. See you soon!P.S. did you know you can sign up to be the first to hear when we open up new slots for Impossible to Fail, my flagship 1:1 coaching program? Just click here to sign up for the waitlist.
- Apr 28, 2026
Berj Fazlian - Berklee as Hogwarts, 32nd Notes, and Life As a Young Drummer
Get the podcast early, and get a FREE drum course First Name * Email * HOOK IT UP Cinque “Ignabu” Kemp is someone I’ve been trying to schedule for the podcast for ages.Beyond his creative approach to the drums, Cinque has a million stories and a unique outlook. And he’s lived multiple lives. As a drummer for people like Macklemore, Flatbush ZOMBiES, Ana Tijoux, Melanie Charles, a producer, and - not making this up - a model. Google him.But Cinque is also “the guy upstairs” from the days when I used to have a secondary studio on the other side of the labyrinthine complex of studios in my neighborhood in Brooklyn. From time-to-time, I’ve shared walls or floorboards with somebody who made me think “damn, they’re heavy”. I’d hear somebody shredding upstairs, and it turned out it was Cinque. From time to time we’d bump into one-another on the elevator and say “we should do an interview.” When Cinque finally had time in his busy schedule to swing by 8020 HQ, I had to jump on it.You’ll enjoy this interview as well if you want to see a less-”produced” side of me. What can I say - Cinque brings it out of me.In this engaging conversation, Cinque weighs in on flow states, the role of practice in his life these days, his almost mystical appreciation of creativity, how the “non-drum” creative hats he’s worn have informed his approach to drums, tour stories, and more.Hope you enjoy!P.S. did you know you can sign up to be the first to hear when we open up new slots for Impossible to Fail, my flagship 1:1 coaching program? Just click here to sign up for the waitlist.
- Mar 30, 2026
Cinque "Ignabu" Kemp - Macklemore/Ana Tijoux' Drummer Joins Me Live
Get the podcast early, and get a FREE drum course First Name * Email * HOOK IT UP Cinque “Ignabu” Kemp is someone I’ve been trying to schedule for the podcast for ages.Beyond his creative approach to the drums, Cinque has a million stories and a unique outlook. And he’s lived multiple lives. As a drummer for people like Macklemore, Flatbush ZOMBiES, Ana Tijoux, Melanie Charles, a producer, and - not making this up - a model. Google him.But Cinque is also “the guy upstairs” from the days when I used to have a secondary studio on the other side of the labyrinthine complex of studios in my neighborhood in Brooklyn. From time-to-time, I’ve shared walls or floorboards with somebody who made me think “damn, they’re heavy”. I’d hear somebody shredding upstairs, and it turned out it was Cinque. From time to time we’d bump into one-another on the elevator and say “we should do an interview.” When Cinque finally had time in his busy schedule to swing by 8020 HQ, I had to jump on it.You’ll enjoy this interview as well if you want to see a less-”produced” side of me. What can I say - Cinque brings it out of me.In this engaging conversation, Cinque weighs in on flow states, the role of practice in his life these days, his almost mystical appreciation of creativity, how the “non-drum” creative hats he’s worn have informed his approach to drums, tour stories, and more.Hope you enjoy!P.S. did you know you can sign up to be the first to hear when we open up new slots for Impossible to Fail, my flagship 1:1 coaching program? Just click here to sign up for the waitlist.
- Jan 26, 2026
Jonathan Barber - Don't Play for Other Drummers. Play for The Band.
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- Dec 2, 2025
Jesse Shreibman - Bell Witch and Bending Time
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- Nov 17, 2025
Diego Joaquin Ramirez - I Only Practice When I Want To
Get the podcast early, and get a FREE drum course First Name * Email * HOOK IT UP There are a few drummers who, when they drop new clips, I’m like stop everything.One is Noah Fuerbringer. Another is this week’s guest for the third-ever in person podcast, Diego Ramirez.Hailing from Ireland, and veteran of Berklee and Jazz Ahead, Diego is one of the most creative drummers I’m listening to. He’s played with Cartoons, Jonathan Scales, Marc Cary, and Jeremy Pelt. His own group, which recently released an album, is called Estratos.It’s hard to describe his drumming exactly. It sounds “of the moment”, but also deeply individual - as if he’s pulling from a wider palette of musical choices than many of us.Because Diego lives here in New York, I had the opportunity to host him in person, in the studio. Which went off almost without a hitch, except that our mics did not like the fan, so the audio, while clear, sounds a little like we’re speaking in the wind. Seated behind the drums, Diego was invited to play if he felt like it, or just chat, and decided he preferred to chat.Almost from the word “go”, Diego fascinated me with his ethos. “I only practice when I want to practice” he says. I told him later of my “cave” construct, and that he reminded me of guests like Chris Turner - people who seem to fall in love anew with the drums every day.But Diego’s background is important. Born in Ireland to a family of musicians, Diego was surrounded by music from early childhood. (His dad, he says, was in a semi-famous band in Guatemala in the ‘70s.) Which might explain why his relationship with music in later life - which is to say his teens and 20s - was astonishingly uncomplicated.Practice, rather than the process of unearthing and machining weaknesses it is for many of us, was like an enchanting journey of discovery for Diego. He describes hearing Tony Williams on Nefertiti, and becoming obsessed with duplicating his sound.Sound is a filter through which Diego views a lot of drumming, including improvisation. He doesn’t think in shapes or idioms, he says. Only in terms of creating the sound he hears in his head.The results of that approach are evident. He has a style unencumbered by comparison to other drummers, that shows influence, but is almost impervious to trends.I hope you’ll enjoy this conversation as much as I did.
- Sep 22, 2025
Henry Cole - I Made My Own Path
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About Podcast - The 8020 Drummer
The first and only podcast devoted to helping you become great at the drums by asking the people who should know - great drummers. And unlike other podcasts, I actually play drums with these guys and record it so you can listen as we talk.
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