Most Drummers Don't Do This... But YOU Should! 

People might think they want crazy chop videos, but this kind of video is gold. After 15 years of drumming I’m taking things back to basics and trying to ‘perfect’ them as much as a I can, so this is a awesome video for that

“And it has that kwingggg!” Haha love this lesson Mike!

As a teacher myself Mike really breaks this down so well. Most students don’t think of the possibilities of changing the feel or lope to a simple groove making it their own and in turn the musicality that is available to us

Love this video and a more conceptual approach. While I’m awed by Mike’s ability to flawlessly execute and explain complicated fills, I never try to break them down myself. Not practical for the cover stuff I play or what I want to do on a kit.

This is great, Mike. It’s one thing any drummer can do to improve the way they approach writing and going deeper without having to work on very difficult chops that they may not have time for and their band mates may not appreciate or want.

Love it Mike. Keeping it simple but can apply to everything. You really illustrate how to simply “sound better”.

I have been watching your lessons for years now, I am really enjoy the new style of videos! Your concepts always inspire me to try new ideas! Thanks for another great video!

This is one of my fav lessons you’ve done in years! Lots more of this type of lesson please! 🍵

Loving that new format! makes the whole thing actually precise and versatile. you're not teaching one groove or fill, you're teaching a new way to approach everything we already -thought we- knew! great content as always :)

I always get inspired by your passion for teaching. It makes me think more musically. Thank you for keeping us RU-vidrs on the radar.

I absolutely love this lesson, Mike! I've been practising my fills recently, this video and the mindset in it really help me a lot, thanks!!

One of the best lessons on drumming I’ve ever seen. So simple, so much information. Perfect.

In a similar vein of playing with "care" I would add playing with conviction, having a deep heartfelt feeling & connection to what one is playing. For example I've seen this topic in some Eric Moore video's where people are amazed with the intensity/power/feeling that he's playing with, which in essence comes down to that EM is playing with 100% conviction. The question then arises how does one playing with conviction? There could be many interpretations to this questions but one way to explain simply & precisely I would say that one has to commit to communicating a feeling in the moment and BELIEVE in what one is playing 100%, one could playing literally anything ("basically anything," basic quarter notes etc) and make it sound a certain way dictated by the feeling of what one is attempting to communicate. It could be urgency, intensity, power, "chill-ness", funkiness etc. Those feelings can be felt by the listener and what separates many drummers, b/c those feelings is what ultimately creates the emotional connection to music, which I'd say is one of the most important, possibly "the" most important aspect to music. How else could music be as powerful to make people feel the entire spectrum of human emotion. Another pertinent point I'd add is a quote from Jojo Mayer (from the Guitar Center Pleasure Control video) Jojo states "I do not think that complexity is prohibited of getting over to a larger audience, I think what is prohibitive is you don't counterbalance a cerebral statement with an emotional one, I think that's very important, once you have a serious concern for communicating a feeling, then it doesn't really matter so much what it is that you do, as long as you're able to express yourself, I think that's very important, because drumming to me is a communication instrument."

This concept encompasses exploring the possibilities on the drums, developing our own vocabulary, our resourcefulness skills, as well as our musicianship. Excellent lesson on caring.

This resonates so much. I'm a percussionist and I started playing on the kit around 2015 and man it's been a journey. Videos like this really do help in making you feel more comfortable on the kit. It's also amazing how you can deconstruct the concepts you want to teach as well as the manner you present it. You're an amazing teacher. Thank you for this

Always enjoy your enthusiasm. And getting into your thought process… well, I had to go sit down at the drums. Hadn’t practiced in weeks. Just played for three hours. Thanks Mike.

Love this, Mike -- thanks for sharing. The conceptual lessons are far more helpful to me than specifics. The way you walked through this was a perfect example of why. Looking forward to more!

Love the more conceptual lessons, the ones that apply to most things we do on the kit. Thanks, Mike

I don’t normally comment on videos but this was worth it. I love the conceptual stuff because that’s where the gold is! Like your podcast, the approach and the why behind a lot of what’s done, is more valuable. It let’s you gather tools to use with any type of music. I also teach and I get so pumped when a student comes with a concept question! You do a lot of great teaching but you also fill a large gap in the drum community with these types of videos. You are a teacher but you are also a drum mentor. Thank you for sharing who you are and for being a true champion of growth in others!

Great lesson. I think this is the difference when you listen to a pro, the care and commitment. I’ve seen Steve Gadd play ‘simple’ beats but he was totally committed and it sounds amazing

I can’t learn from memory, no matter how many times I learn a fill no matter how simple it’s soon gone so my only option is to take fundamental ideas and apply various concepts to them then practice, practice, practice until the ideas become instinct (like learning how to read or write). For me these kind of lessons are absolutely vital to my ability to progress. I very much hope you do continue to release lessons like this because they help me a great deal.

Loved this style of a lesson! So much more beneficial than any lick. I’m always interested in how to get my playing to next level and more professional sounding.

Great lesson. Dynamics and orchestration are a huge bonus with chops!

This is fantastic! Conceptual lessons like this are absolutely welcome in my opinion! Great lesson and that fill that you discovered by playing and caring (also caring enough to be paying attention to what your own improv was), yeah that was fun for sure!

I absolutely love that appoach, it is extremely helpful - thanks a lot!!

Keep bringing these ideas I've been trying to share stuff like this with other drummers that I know and this is an amazing video that I will pass around

Spot on lesson. This is what I needed at my stage on this instrument. Thanks as always

First time I have watched one of your lessons. I was very impressed with your concept of learning a groove or a fill and then making it your own. Such an important concept for all drummers to learn.

This is exactly what I need. As with the from the page to the gig video and the warmup with the 6 note rudiments. Thank you!

Mike, I appreciate your sense of excitement finding the most impactful combinations!

What you just taught makes all the sence in the DRUM WORLD...glad I clicked on your site! Thank's for your Great and Interesting Input! Todd

Great lesson. Love this conceptual approach. And the you cut to the old video - hysterical. Fun and inspiring Mike.

I like it! Great reminder to break down your basic grooves and think intentionally about each aspect and hit. Feels like a good way to spice up part-writing for new songs too. Start basic and build off each piece.

Love the approach, angles and clear messaging Mike, greetz from Poland, your podcast with Eddy is splendid mate

Mike - I’ve watched & listened to you for years. This is one of your absolute best lessons. Why? Because you show in detail how something gets layered up & why you are adding each nuance to what started as a straight forward groove.. This makes it easier for us to do it ourselves. Thanks!!

Mike, this is great! Love the conceptual lessons that change how we approach practicing and honing this craft.

GREAT tips from a GREAT teacher! You are extremely inspiring, humoristic and have such a natural approach by expressing what we all experience during our journey... - Thank You Mike!

Great video. Love the conceptual aspect of the lesson. We've all been jamin a groove and found something by experimenting. To me it's where the magic is with playing drums or just music in general. Very satisfying to do and so much fun to express on the drums. Thanks man. keep it up. more please.

Yes! More conceptual, please. Loved this. Your passion and enthusiasm shines brilliantly along with your technique.

thanks Mike, it was like a MasterClass... very useful... what every drummer wants, the orchestration, playing over the whole drum kit, making it sound melodious, harmonious... It was always difficult for me to play paradiddle on the whole drum set, , Greetings from Argentina. Chelo.

Loved this kind of vid. The conceptual stuff is perfect. Need more of this 100%

One of the best videos I've seen you do. Super inspired to get to the kit!

Yeah Mike 😃 love it! It’s great to make lessons about what it is that makes music feel great. I think care is absolutely something that kicks in when you’re properly inspired and I believe this illustrates it really well.

Awesome Mike Thankyou ,so easy to listen and understand the concept

I enjoyed it! Ill be keeping this tab open for a while. Evergreen material right here - i can apply it to all styles. Love it!

This lesson is right up my alley, good stuff, and it made sense and was fun. Many thanks for taking the time.

I'll always watch, enjoy and learn from everything you put out.

Excellent drumming, instruction and demonstration. Oh, great sounding cymbals, too! ✊🏼🥁

This was a great lesson. I love the conceptual/practical stuff. I got a lot out of this one, Mike!

These types of lessons are great. Concepts fuel individual creativity, not just lick regurgitation. Keep ‘‘em coming!

Mike, I bought your books years ago and thought they were great. This lesson brings everything you have been preaching to a whole new level. Taking possible boring exercises to rhythmic musical expressions of sound in one simple video. You nailed it. Btw….. I taught public school music for 30 years back in the day. It ain’t about the chops it’s about the feelings that are expressed while playing the notes.

Are you kidding me? That was the best lesson I've ever had in years!!! Thank you sir I'm still a band nerd at 44 that being said... The way you explained and gave examples of the lesson blew me away!!! This method would of help me understand way better when I was starting out. Hope to see more!!!

Great lesson Mike. I love the idea of breaking down (and then building up) very simple stuff.

This is great, Mike! More like these would be greatly appreciated! 🙏

Love this Mike! Fresh idea and way to approach teaching which explains some of the "why" you and others do what they do when it comes to playing and approaching playing. One of the greatest comments I've heard about playing was by Neil Peart, "Serve the song not yourself". This approach about caring comes in as my second favorite quote and approaches to playing.

Good food for thought. Especially helpful to watch while I’m away from the kit … to inform what I do when I get some kit time and how to make the most of it.

Nice fills Mike, they sound so musical, it’s also the way you put passion into them!

Definitely conceptual. Now I got something to focus on today. Thx MJ

Hi Mike, great lesson. Definitly I'm more into conceptual lessons like that. Cheers

Thank you so much Mike. This was exactly what I needed to get me to immediately jump behind the kit and re-think. I definitely left the room feeling more creative.

man, what an amazing video! this one of the things i search for the most but barely find. i am so glad you did that lesson. i really believe those "conceptual" things are the most important' because that's what music is all about, to care about every note and make from something simple and sometimes even useless music. thanks a lot for this video. hope you'll make more videos like this.🙂

This is the second video I’ve watched of yours man, and you just got yourself another subscriber. Your genuine care and message that you’re giving drummers is beautiful man. Really focusing on the “you” aspect of drumming and encouraging them to find themselves on the kit. Wow wow wow, you are an exceptional talent, but more importantly, an invaluable teacher. Thank you so much for sharing your passion with this amazing community and keep it up. I’ll be here supporting you brother, I wish you nothing but success and happiness!

This here!!! This is it!!! It is ALL about our approach and thinking towards our craft!!! Thank you for this lesson!!!!

Love it so much! Thanks for the lesson!!

Awesome Mike !! This concept makes the drums come alive !!❤ Thank you

Great lesson. Really enjoyed the conceptual vibe. Keep ‘em coming 👍

From the moment I first found you on RU-vid over a decade ago, until today, you are still the best educator I've ever found on RU-vid period.

Conceptual lessons for the win! I’m passed the stage of needing or wanting straight speed and chops. I am more interested now in independence and musicality. This was that. Thanks Mike!

Love your teaching style and the grooves are very nice.

For me, this type of lesson helps me to learn more than learning 'a lick' (which I also enjoy when you teach it). You have a rare gift for teaching and communicating. Thank you.

Great lesson Mike. It is helpful to walk through the process as you did in this video. This video essentially shows the important skill of taking a chunk and playing with it until you own it, and then adapting it to express your own unique flavor with it in much the same way a student begins using a new vocabulary word in their daily conversations. I am very much interested in the conceptual lessons as they give me building blocks to create tasty little musical passages. This is particularly funny to me as I have been practicing your favorite new exercise for the last few days and have been noticing how applicable it is to form fills and groove ideas. So this lesson reinforces what I have been doing which is encouraging. Once again, thank you for another insightful, and encouraging lesson.

Amazing conceptual lesson. I love it! I’m on this learning journey but this adds a certain stank that is super valuable

That was awesome, so going to utilise this concept and apply “ I CARE” thanks Mike

I think the video is good. You’re very good at breaking things down and showing that, then you show how too use what it. Been following you for a couple of years. 🤘🏼😎

You are very good teacher and player. Thank you from Greece.

Super love the conceptual stuff man. The internet is already over saturated with crazy lick lessons but conceptual stuff is way more useful for bringing your own stuff to the table. Great lesson as always man!

One of my favourite lessons, Mike! “CARE” is so important

Absolutely loved the "make it your own" thing Mike!! Care is my new mantra! Thanks

Good stuff Mike!! The "When" of drumming concepts and the "Why" are just as important as the "How to" of drumming.

Thanks Mike - this kind of approach is exactly what keeps me going! :^) I feel a pull to my drum set doing research on it...

Mike, I just came across this video tonight. I practiced earlier today and did a recording session earlier tonight. But now I need to go i to my studio and work on what you covered here. Pretty inspirational brother 👍🏻👍🏻

This kind of lessons are the most important ones for any musician. Fantastic!

Mike, absolutely, give us more conceptual lessons. I think this type of lesson goes a lot further to helping me improve not only what I'm playing, but how I play it.

Amazing lesson, truly. Drumming can so easily become exclusively about mechanics: new patterns, new licks, end of story. Watching and listening to instrumentalists is a window into their state of mind. How we think, how we breathe, and how in the moment we are can deeply affect how we sound. More lessons like this are encouraged.

Great lesson! These are similar concepts I discuss with my students. Pay attention to what you are doing! What is each limb doing and why? Exhausting your possibilities is such a fun way to gain understanding of what is possible on this wonderful instrument. Thanks Mike!

This was a phenomenal lesson. Thank you so much for your content!

Love this type of lesson. Thanks !

Great lesson. This will help drummers develop their sound and feel. Thanks for posting this.

This is great because you can add this mindset to any specific lesson. Thanks!

The fill at the end was so groovy! Thanks for your knowledge, as always. This is my honest request on what are we looking for at the moment as a drummer, there are many of us working as a drum tutor that are watching a lot of drum tutorial to somewhat looking for material or inspiration to teach and I was wondering if you can give us (drum tutor) some tips and advice on how to get our student motivated and also for me specifically, some sort of structure on how to make our student to get into improvisation? Because a lot of my students can only play when there's a drum sheet in front of them but really can't really play without em even on a drumless backing track. I'm having trouble on how to make them into just making music instead of waiting for a drum sheet for every session.

Absolutely love this lesson Mike, your teaching is inspirational for me and, judging by these comments, clearly loads of others too. I'd never thought about this before and it's really opened my eyes, cannot wait to get practising again. Thank you as always for sharing your knowledge and in such a brilliantly engaging way. 😁👍👌👊🥁

Really enjoyed this man. The mind set and dynamics are so important and it’s never really talked about. It translates to guitar, bass, vocals, everything. My dad taught me the dynamics trick when I was a kid and it really changed how I heard and played music. Well done, SUPER useful information.

Really great lesson Mike! I love these concepts, because they give a lot of it in return. It’s not only the concepts but also the things you do within these concepts that make you think: “Damn, i need to work on that” Love it!!

Whatever you are willing to share is great... thanks

Coming from a family of drummers,I like it. My nephew Garrett Roberson came out and did one of your clinics! He said it was awesome! Keep doing what you're doing, love it!

Yes Mike, please more conceptual stuff, because it is not always about how cool we are as drummers when we do the chops. It's also about to appreciate all these awesome things drums are able to do when we care, and when are ready for it. It is logical that there should be a harmonic relationship between the musician and the instrument, but this is often neglected because it needs care and and additional energy. Lessons like this remember us why we are doing this in the first place. That is, because we love our instrument, we love these sweet sounds it is capable to do, because we love music, life, ourselves, and the people we are making music for. Mike, thank you so much for remembering us.

Mike - 66 year old self taught gigging bar and cover band drummer here - first video I’ve seen of you - really great - I particularly like the obvious enjoyment you get when playing - really great stuff - I look forward to more - Andy

I totally dug this video. It covers everything I have been lacking. Thanks for sharing way cool school.

Great lesson Mike! I'm getting my sticks and I will go on with tthe idea :D Thanks !

LOVE the conceptual lessons! More of these, please. Also, I've been following 'that idiot' since he started these videos, and I think we're all the better for it, lol. More power to ya!