The First Time I Ever Played a Drumset
“Yeah… he…um- definitely has some…potential,” the music store employee gingerly observed after I laid down my very first sick beats on a real drumset.
The only problem was, my 12-year-old beats were not sick. At least not in a good way. I had no coordination and no idea how to hold my sticks. I actually remember just hitting everything I could as fast as I could in my nervous excitement. After all, I didn’t know when my next opportunity might be. Getting a drumset was way out of my reach. I was already pretty involved with playing piano, which I’d been learning since 3rd grade. My parents weren’t eager to sign me up for a second instrument, and I doubt they wanted the noise around the house either. Playing the drums and becoming a drummer was a very, very far-off dream at the time. Getting a drumset wasn’t going to be a quick and easy process for me…
Everybody dreams of something. Maybe you dream of retiring so you have more time to spend with family and on hobbies. Maybe you want to travel, but you lack the time and money to do it right now. Maybe you just want to get out of the suburbs and build a nice, custom home on a hilltop in the country. Or maybe you want to play drums like the drumming heroes you grew up watching, like Neil Peart, Chad Smith, or Steve Gadd.
Here’s the thing. There are two sides of the spectrum: the dreamers whose heads are perpetually in the clouds…and those who criticize the dreamers whose heads are in the clouds.
Now there are folks who are literally just dreamers with their heads in the clouds. But there are also people who dream big…and they work hard to achieve that dream - whatever it is. Maybe everybody thinks they’re crazy. Maybe they go through life constantly hearing “go out and get a REAL job!”Maybe they’ve been shot down and rejected so many times that they doubt they’re capable of actually succeeding.
What’s the difference between those who reach their dreams and those who don’t?
Those who succeed accept the truth that though they might possess zero skill, they’re going to do whatever it takes to learn. They have curiosity. They have work ethic. They have a perpetual motivation that isn’t deterred by negative voices around them. They have a clear vision for what they want to do, and they stay laser focused on that one thing.
Here’s another big one, though. Those who succeed choose not to worry about failure. Failure will happen. I’ve failed in drumming and gigging many times, and I’ve failed in business many times as well. Building the Non Glamorous Drummer online business has taught me how to fail and learn, then fail and learn again. Every time I play badly at a rehearsal or gig, I’m freshly motivated to fix the mistakes and play better next time. Make the decision to leave fear of failure behind, because it will only slow you down.
Maybe you caught my hint at the next big truth here:
You don’t have to possess any skill on day #1 in order to learn a new skill and succeed at it. (I am PROOF of this!)
Regardless of your current skill level on the drums, you are capable of success. That’s our mission statement at the Non Glamorous Drummer. “ANYONE can master the drums when they’re armed with the right know-how.” If you have the tools, the curiosity, and the work ethic, you WILLsucceed. Don’t let lack of skill stop you. Don’t let the fact that you’re 72 years old and just getting started stop you.
I was terrible at the drums when I first sat down that day at the music store. I literally knew nothing. I had no idea how to play a beat of any type, and my hands were gripping the sticks like a toddler might hang onto a fork at the dinner table. We all have to start somewhere. Yes, I got started when I was a carefree kid with all the time in the world. I know that it’s different after you grow up and get a job and have a family. It’s tough to commit to a dream when you feel you have no time to invest into it. But when you focus on the right things, you can make progress a lot faster that I did as a young teenager. You can actually channel the adult maturity into more strategic practice that yields quicker, higher quality results.
I didn’t grow a lot in my first 2 years of “self-taught” playing, but once I started lessons my playing accelerated rapidly. Once I had access to the right resources and the right feedback, I grew so much faster than I ever thought I would. If you have the right tools, you can learn anything and do anything you want to do.
I hope the NGD YouTube channel is consistently a helpful resource of high-value, impactful teaching that really helps you grow. My goal is for every one of the lessons to be a key tool that gets you a step closer to achieving your goals. These are the online lessons I wish I had when I was first learning. Here in 2021 you have the internet at your disposal. There’s literally no better time to start learning something!
Start right here with the "what & how to practice" playlist on the channel. And if you’re ready to dig deeper, check out all the additional resources on the website that are designed to give you all the tools you need to master a skill. You can even get personalized feedback on your playing or one-on-one coaching if you’re interested.
However you choose to learn…the point is that you choose to learn. Become a great drummer in 2021.
I did eventually buy a drumset by the way - two years after that day at the music store! I saved up money until I could afford a super basic electric kit. I then saved up again two years after that to buy my first acoustic kit. My parents did end up getting me lessons in high school, and they quickly got used to the incessant rumble thundering above the kitchen every afternoon and evening. It’s funny how many times they had to replace those ceiling lights in the kitchen.
My dream of learning drums and being a drummer required lots of saving up money and mowing grass, then tons of practice, hard work, and sacrifice on top of that. No dream is easy, but a dream you work hard for will be worth it.
Happy New Year! Stay Non Glamorous & God Bless,
Stephen
