We recently connected with Brendan Buckley and have shared our conversation below.

Brendan, appreciate you joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I began studying music as a child, first on piano, and then on trumpet. When I reached the age of 14, I became hooked on MTV and rock music. Somehow, I persuaded my parents to let me purchase a used drumset from a neighbor. I became obsessed with drumming from that point onward. In high school, I took drum lessons from a great teacher named Tommy Igoe. Then, for college I moved from New Jersey to Miami to study at their esteemed conservatory of music. I found that city to be very musically and culturally inspiring. Things snowballed in Florida for several years. On my 30th birthday, I decided to shake things up by relocating to Los Angeles. I loved everything about the music community in L.A. Every day, I wake up with the attitude that there is even more to learn and more to do. I feel very fortunate to be on this path, surrounded by inspirational people.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have been a freelance drummer for over 30 years. My career in music varies from project to project. Sometimes, I go on concert tours as a member of a pop artist’s band. Other times, I work in a studio recording drum and percussion parts for an album. I am enthusiastic about education, and I enjoy teaching music whenever possible. I am most known for my work over the past 26 years with Shakira. But I have also made music with artists such as: Morrissey, Perry Farrell, Tegan & Sara, Minnie Driver, Daniel Powter, Shelby Lynne, Idina Menzel, Damien Rice, Natalia Lafourcade, Leehom Wang, JJ Lin, Aleks Syntek, Miley Cyrus, Roberto Carlos, Ozomatli, Paulina Rubio, Fulano, Alejandra Guzman, MIYAVI, Beto Cuevas, Jackson Wang, Alejandro Sanz, DMX, Gloria Estefan, Lol & Budgie, and Julio Iglesias. I compose and produce music out of my own studio Reflector Music located in Silver Lake, CA.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The world is full of clutter. I try to bring a bit of beauty and inspiration to the people around me. I feel as though that is my role as an artist.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

My social media presence is based upon assisting others. I focus on spreading helpful information, humor, art, thought-provoking quotes, recommendations, advice, etc. When it comes to sharing videos of my drumming, I prefer showing the most useful or helpful styles and techniques. I’d like to be a resource for others. I should also mention that I host an Instagram/YouTube program called DrummerPlusDrummer which features drum duets with some of my favorite players in the industry.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brendanbuckley.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brendanbuckley/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrendanBuckleyMusic
• Linkedin: –
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/brendandrums
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/relombakurunda
• Yelp: –
• Soundcloud: –
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/drummerplusdrummer/

Image Credits

Alex Kluft, Pierre Martin, Mari Buckley