MIAMI – What do Shakira, Barry Gibb, Kelly Clarkson, Christopher Cross, and Bad Bunny have in popular?
In addition to becoming sensational musicians, they have all worked with Grammy Award-successful community drummer Lee Levin.
Levin is a musician, producer, and engineer, who is thought of the most sought-right after session drummer in South Florida. He is also an advocate for musicians’ rights and has some thing in widespread with a Supreme Courtroom justice way too.
Regardless of whether he is riffing by yourself in his studio, or live before a hundred thousand new music admirers touring with Barry Gibb, Levin is much more than “keeping alive,” he is flourishing in the audio business.
From banging on pots and pans as a minimal kid to lessons from age five, Levin analyzed new music in high university and at the College of Miami. Immediately after graduation in 1989, amazingly failed to go away Florida.
“I prepared to go to Los Angeles suitable out of college or university because that is where the studio scene was and that’s what I required to do. About a thirty day period immediately after faculty, I observed an audition for a Latin artist named Chayanne and I got the gig. It was with a bunch of pals that also went to the University of Miami as effectively,” Levin mentioned.
From there the phone calls arrived in and the function continued, primary to 7 Latin Grammy Awards, 1 Grammy Award, and many nominations. From salsa to rock to reggae, no matter whether with artists or earning professional jingles, most of his operate is completed in his home studio.
Just one instance of several is his actively playing the drums on the 2015 pop hit by Banners identified as “Someone to You.”
In 2021, he was the musical director for the Latin Grammys, executing with Undesirable Bunny, which led to touring with the reggaeton megastar as musical director and drummer.
“That album he was touring on experienced a great deal of are living music and drums and guitar, so he needed to insert that component to the tour and it was a lot of fun,” Levin recalled.
He shares his expertise as an active member of the Recording Academy for in excess of twenty decades. One part he plays is advocating for musicians’ passions to lawmakers in Washington D.C. He is also element of the band that plays live shows there named “Grammy on The Hill,” or GOTH for limited.
A humble guy, he credits his good results to tricky operate and states each of his nominations and awards is thanks to teamwork. Levin explained he is just not in it for the recognition. When Palmetto Senior Substantial University declared he’d been nominated for the school’s Hall of Fame as a graduate of the class of 1985, he was stunned.
“Actually when I received the simply call, I considered they experienced built a blunder! A drummer? I just bang on things for a residing and these other men and women invent stuff and do technology. And you will find a Supreme Court docket Justice (Ketanji Brown Jackson). It was wonderful,” he reported.
Levin claimed he won’t just take any of it for granted.
“I have noticed the entire world. I have performed in China, in Russia at the Kremlin, the Glastonbury Festival, and the Discussion board in LA. I feel like I’ve been so fortunate to get paid out to do what I love to do and see the planet with my close friends, and engage in music. I suggest, what greater job is there?” he said.
Levin extra that 1 of his Grammy Awards is held at his mom’s house. He credits her for telling him he could make a vocation out of ‘banging on things.’
To verify out Levin undertaking what he enjoys, head on around to his YouTube webpage.
