Wes Little

Introduction: Do you ever wish that you could take lessons from a drummer who is currently touring and recording on a daily basis, who also has a Master's Degree in Music Performance from the world's largest music conservatory? Well, you can. Wes Little is one of Nashville and New York City's premier drummers, and is now taking on a limited number of students for lessons. If you want to learn from a full-time professional drummer, Wes can give you the real world experience that is vital for success in the music business today. Playing drums for over 30 years, Wes has performed and recorded with a myriad of world-renowned artists. These include: Sting, Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Joe Perry, Steven Tyler, John Legend, Jamie Fox, Melissa Etheridge, Jermaine Jackson, Mariah Carey, Public Enemy, Shakira, Busta Rhymes, Faith Hill, Mary J. Blige, Anita Baker, Paul Shaffer, Joe Dee Messina, Joe Nichols, Jimmy Wayne, Billy Dean, Chuck D. and Fine Arts Militia, Lorrie Morgan, Chuck D. and Confrontation Camp, Bootsy Collins, MC Lyte, KRS-One, Vernon Reid, Delbert McClinton, Big Daddy Kane, Diana Degarmo, The Pointer Sisters, Dennis Edwards (The Temptations), Melba Moore, Randy Brecker, Michael Brecker, Victoria Banks, Britt Savage and Twang Deluxe, Linda Davis, Rick Huckaby, Dan Colehour, Clara Oman, Mary McBride, and his own venture - The Big Greasy. Wes also has and an extensive academic background in music, and has studied with several of the top percussion and drum set teachers in the US. Education: * Music Composition Bachelor's Degree from East Carolina University, with a Minor in Jazz Studies (Magna Cum Laude) * Jazz Performance Master's Degree from the Manhattan School of Music (Magna Cum Laude) * Over 20 years of professional playing experience Teaching Experience: * Private studio in Raleigh, NC from 1994-1996 * Staff faculty at The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music from 1999-2001 * Private studio in Nashville, TN from 2008 to present Previous teachers include: * John Riley, Manhattan School of Music, The New School, William Patterson University * Justin Dicioccio, Manhattan School of Music, LaGuardia School of the Performing Arts * Mark Ford, East Carolina University, University of North Texas, Percussive Arts Society President * Carroll Dashiell, Director of Jazz Studies, East Carolina University Additional Credits: Selected discography: * The Chitlins - Boom Boom - 2009 * Billy Dean Sings Richard Lee - Billy Dean/Richard Lee - BDMG - 2009 * Old Things New - Joe Nichols - Universal South - 2009 * Sacred Road - Sacred Road - Universal - 2009 * Billy Dean Now and Then (Greatest Hits) - BDMG - 2008 * The People That Move America - Billy Dean - BDMG - 2008 * All Wound Up - Dave Fields - Indie - 2008 * Victoria Banks - When You Can Fly - On Ramp Records, EMI (Canada) - 2008 * Fingerprints - Britt Savage and Twang Deluxe - Hearo Records - 2007 * Loralye - Loralye - Rodeostar (Germany) - 2007 * Pete Best - Built to Last - Rocky Comfort Records- 2007 * BDMB - From Now On - Clara Oman - 2007 * Time's A Wastin' - Dave Fields - Indie - 2007 * Brent Rader - Brent Rader - BDMG - 2006 * A Call To Conscience - Izzy James - Indie - 2006 * The Drakes - The Drakes - Indie - 2003 * Father Oblivion - Father Oblivion - Indie - 2003 * Chuck D. and Fine Arts Militia - Lighting In a Bottle - Sony Classics - 2003 * Confrontation Camp (feat. Chuck D.) - Objects in the Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear - Artemis/Koch - 2000 Television and Video: * "Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off" Joe Nichols 2011- Fox New Year's Eve Live from Las Vegas * "Gimme That Girl" Joe Nichols 2010 - Tonight Show with Jay Leno * Barack Obama Presidential "Neighborhood" Inaugural Ball, Washington DC Convention Center, 2009 - Ray Chew and the Crew with Stevie Wonder, Sting, Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, Shakira, Faith Hill, Mary J.Blige * Save the World Awards, 2009, Zwentendorf, Austria * "My Iraq Diary" 2009, Music Documentary - Joe Nichols * "Gimme That Girl." 2009, Music Video - Joe Nichols * Ray Chew and the Crew - Democratic National Convention, 2008, Denver, CO * NASCAR Awards, 2008, Waldorf Astoria, NYC * Britt Savage and Twang Deluxe - Lookin' Like I'm Gonna, 2007, Music Video * NASCAR Awards, 2006, Waldorf Astoria, NYC * Grand Old Opry, 2005, Nashville, TN - Billy Dean * Lighting in A Bottle, 2003, Radio City Music Hall, NYC - Sony Classics, Chuck D. and Fine Arts Militia, Directed by Martin Scorcese * ESPY Awards 2003, 2004, Los Angeles, CA - Hosted by Jamie Foxx * Brake the Law, Music Video, 2000 - Confrontation Camp (feat. Chuck D.), Directed by Robert Spruell * Public Enemy, Behind the Music, 2000 NY Broadway and Off Broadway: * Rat Pack: Live at the Sands, 2006 to 2007, National Tour, on stage drums * BKLYN the Musical, 2006, National Tour, drums and percussion * Almost Heaven, 2005, drums (on stage) * Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, 2005, Drums and Electronic Percussion * Once Around the Sun, 2005, Drums, on Stage Electronic Drums and cast as "Richie" * Love Janis, 2001, Drums (on stage) Bio: On a momentous night during the Winter of 2009, drummer Wes Little proved beyond all doubt that he's the nimble, adaptable, professional musician he wanted to be even prior to leaving his little Southern home town. The event: the inaugural ball for newly chosen President Barack Obama. The job: to back a jaw-dropping lineup of legendary talent, including Sting, Stevie Wonder, Faith Hill, Mary J. Blige, and Beyonce. Through a wild variety of temperaments, arrangements, and styles, Wes Little held down the groove, pleased the most challenging stars and made the whole event bolder, smoother and better. Star-studded as it was, the inaugural ball was not by any means the first validation of Little's multi-faceted musicianship. For a decade in New York and in recent years in Nashville, Little has been calmly taking his place as one of the elite session drummers, supporting major artists in rock, jazz, hip-hop and country. "I'm sort of a musical chameleon," says Little. "I've played the Grand Ole Opry with country artists. I've played CBGBs with bands. I've played Carnegie Hall with a choir and with Chuck D at Hammerstein Ballroom. It's always an adventure when you're able and open to doing a lot of musical styles." That adventure began in a small college town, Wingate, North Carolina, southeast of Charlotte, where his parents were both educators. Without the big city distractions, Wes was attracted to music. He received an acoustic guitar, although its bad action dispirited him. Then eventually, his father, who was responsible for purchasing musical equipment at the local high school, brought home a catalog from the Tama drum firm. For Wes, an image of fusion great Billy Cobham seated behind one of the world's largest drum sets turned into an inspiration. "Next thing you know, I'm out there in the backyard modeling a "drum kit" after his with firewood. My mom said, "That's it, we're going to get him a drum set." Most drummers receive on-the-job training only, but Little had his eyes on a jazz profession, so he took formal studies in music, including a master's degree in jazz drumming from the Manhattan School of Music. As a new specialist in New York, there was definitely jazz around, although there was also a hodgepodge variety of styles and gigs. Little played in theater orchestras, rock bands, and sideman sessions. He associated with hip-hop legend Chuck D and collaborated in a number of his post-Public Enemy bands, which include Fine Arts Militia and Confrontation Camp. While in New York, Little encountered Britt Savage, his future wife who moved to Nashville ahead of him. Since 2004, Little has been based in Nashville where he's earned respect within the Music City studio scene. With that said, he's frequently on the move for work back in New York or tours across the country with Billy Dean, Jo Dee Messina, Joe Nichols, and others. He has also enlarged his work as a songwriter and producer, and he plays regularly as the ultra-mod drummer in Britt Savage's band Twang Deluxe and his own venture funk band The Big Greasy. Little lands his show and keeps getting requested back due to his complete musical chops, but maybe even more due to his sense of professionalism and philosophy. That, he declares, is about serving the artist and the song, and opposing any inclination to show off. "Ninety percent of your work comes from just laying it down, playing a good solid groove and getting the musicians to feel it," says Little. "That's where I want to focus most of my time. Having a background in jazz and fusion music, I can do the crazy stuff, too. And I enjoy doing it when it's called for. But I really don't try to overtly apply it to each gig that I have. Because I can be just as glad playing a basic beat as I would playing something from Mahavishnu's Birds of Fire. It's all music to me. It all comes from the same place. As long as it's honest and intentional, it works for me." Wes Little endorses Sabian Cymbals, Pearl Drums, Vintech Audio, Vater Sticks, Evans Drumheads, Hart Electronics, and Presonus Audio.