We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sam Ward. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sam below.

Alright, Sam thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

I’ve had a very particular dream in my mind since I was only 11 years old. That dream was to become a professional drummer and not only to make a living doing it but to make a great one! To achieve such success as a musician I wanted to be in a band; not any band, but a band of my own. One that I shared with people who were my friends and I could trust. I wanted it to be like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blink 182, or almost all the older bands of the 60’s and 70’s! In my head, I envisioned recording LIVE drums for this band – spending hours upon hours in the studio tracking the drums for a given album or single. After that of course would come the glorious 6 or so months of global touring, which of course would be on a luxurious bus and private planes!

The reality of this was pretty jarring – As I got a bit older, I could see clearly that the art of playing the drums was changing. It was still somewhat in demand, and some artists still NEEDED drummers. Some venues/genres were still grounded in a live band type of concept. One that ONLY included live musicianship. These, however, were happening in smaller and smaller clubs, on smaller tours, and in less demand. As I went through my four years at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, it still seemed to me that my original dream was possible.

It wasn’t until I moved to Los Angeles, CA in the fall of 2017 that I realized just how much had changed in the music industry, particularly when I was asked to audition for Long Beach-based alt/reggae band 4th & Orange. I saw immediately that the landscape for recorded music, even at the highest of levels, was FAR different than I had expected or hoped. The first time I entered a real “studio” in LA (at least what I considered to be a “real” studio – these were those that were located inside of major record label buildings, etc.), I saw that tracking drums live was not even remotely a priority. It seemed like it might not happen at all. To me, a recording studio had a live room, a control room, one vocal booth minimum, at least one booth for the live recording of horns, strings, etc, and had a control room FILLED with outboard gear – both digital AND analog. This was nothing like the studio I walked into. Although it was built in a very high-end, slick and well-sound-treated manner, it was small and only consisted of a couple of couches, two studio chairs, a large desk with a high-end interface, a couple of compressors/expanders, studio monitors & sub and finally a LED monitor for the computer. While it was nice, it was not a studio in my opinion. It was a nice, minimal control room at best.

When we started recording for our first album, we talked about recording several things live, but drums were not one of those things. I was able to convince them that at least some live drums were necessary, so we did record SOME of the drums live; however my drums were HEAVILY replaced by samples (this is a common practice these days). While I liked the music we were turning out, this was nothing like what I really wanted to do. It was far too pop for my liking. I liked the idea of recording a band live, with a click; keeping the drums and maybe any other parts that came out well from that session, then re-recording the other instruments.

It had become clear to me that live drumming was becoming and had become to a large extent, obsolete. I felt as though I had entered the taxi industry the year that Uber and Lyft became a thing. As the years have passed, it has become clear that to make the living I was hoping for playing the drums, I would have to re-invent my dream. This included figuring out how to record MYSELF, produce MYSELF and mix/master MYSELF at a very high quality. This way I could do remote sessions for artists/labels and get paid, while never having to pay an engineer/producer to help me with the session. It was also clear that starting an original band and building it to the level I wanted, or even to the level that bands in the past had made it to, was simply not realistic. Bands don’t work that way anymore. A single artist gets a record deal, the record label searches for talent to support them, and session musicians eventually are hired to play with the artist on tour. Seldom are major artists using live drums on recordings these days. It just is too expensive and time-consuming when they can make a lifeless beat on the computer. When they are, they typically are paid a one time fee for the recording. If the song is a dud, they make the same amount of money. If the song is the biggest hit of the century…. they still make the same amount of money. Touring with artists is similar. Session musicians don’t make NEARLY what the artist is making. They live on a tour bus, make minimal money and are constantly working behind the scenes.

For me personally, teaching drums and recording drums remotely has started to seem like the best and possibly only future as a professional drummer. Also, getting deeper into audio engineering, production, etc is another way to make a lilving as a professional musician. The more that time passes, the faster technology changes. With these changes will undoubtedly come more challenges and unexpected problems.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a professional drummer by trade, and have been playing the instrument seriously since I was 11 years old. I however got my first drum set when I was five and took some drum lessons then.

At the age of 11 as soon a I could play just a few beats well, I started my band called Crash Course. We did haphazard covers of AC/DC, Blur, Black Sabbath, etc. I quickly was “hired” to play in a local Ipswich, MA-based pop/punk band Mission for a Minor. This was my first opportunity to play “real” gigs, recording a couple of professionally recorded and produced albums, and signing briefly with a manager.

I’ve always loved the drums, and knew from the age of 11 that it was going to be my lifelong profession. I put so much blood, sweat and tears into it, words can hardly describe it.

I am very proud of my hard work and dedication to the craft. I have become a high-level educator, session musician, and master of my craft. For that, I am extremely grateful. I have signed major record deals, continue to make a living as a musician, and had the honor of playing on several big stages. I have also had the honor of performing with artists on television. I can’t complain about my job!

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I knew how crucial it was to be in Los Angeles at a young age if I wanted to be successful in the way I had envisioned. It’s not entirely necessary, and people become successful without living in Los Angeles, but it’s not easy.

I also wish I knew how common it was for independent contractors/session musicians to have agents and/or managers. I wish I would have leveraged that more at an earlier age.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn the concept that musicians don’t need to focus on audio production/engineering. I was told early on to focus on my craft and leave that to the devout producers/engineers. Perhaps this was just because they wanted to continue receiving my business. Regardless, I learned quickly (later on) that learning these skills was CRITICAL in me being able to earn a living as an independent drummer.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/wardenondrums
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wardenondrums/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wardenondrums
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_ar4M7CtQKfOdSXOS83nPQ