FAQ

Where are you from?

I was born in Nashville, TN at Hubbard Hospital which was the teaching hospital of Meharry Medical College, one of only four HBCU medical schools.  Spent time in Kent, OH and Gordonsville, TN, before moving to Columbia, MD, a suburb between Baltimore and Washington DC.  In 1991 I went to Boston, MA to attend Berklee College Of Music, and in 1998, I moved to Los Angeles, CA where I currently reside. 

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Who is your favorite band?

Three way tie: Fishbone, 24-7 Spyz, Rage Against The Machine

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What age did you start playing drums?

I began banging on pots and pans with salad spoons around 4 years-old. Santa Claus brought me a Muppets drum set from Sears when I was 5, and after I played it into dust, he brought me a "real" drum set when I was 6.

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What is your favorite food?

Probably pizza, but I do eat at Chipotle so frequently that I refer to it as ChipoteNate, so...

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Do you have any allergies?

Early mornings.

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Do you have any hobbies?

Chess... -also, I turn no wrenches, but I'm a car enthusiast and motorsports fan, particularly F1.

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What is your favorite sport?

Although I am terrible at both, my favorite sports to watch are basketball and tennis.

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What are your favorite teams/players?

Kobe Bryant came to the Lakers via Charlotte in 1996 as did Shaq from Orlando via free-agency. I moved to Los Angeles in 1998... The Lakers won three consecutive NBA Championships, 2000, 2001, 2002... -hard not to get swept into Laker Nation... and Kobe Bryant is definitely my all-time favorite basketball player and no one else is close. Some of my favorite tennis players past and present include, Yannick Noah, James Blake, Roger Federer, Gael Monfils, Alex De Minaur, Ben Shelton, Francis Tiafoe, Serena Williams, Aryna Sabalenka, Leylah Fernandez, Coco Gauff, Maria Sakkari

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When not playing music, have you had a least favorite job?

I've had two. When I was in high school, one of my first jobs was working at a fast food restaurant called Hardee's. I was a cashier, but after a couple of weeks, I began to have nightmares. I would dream that I was the only employee in the store... In the dream, was tasked with taking orders, cooking the food and cleaning the establishment... literally RUNNING from one duty to the other, all the while there was a line of customers out the door, all screaming at me! After 3 nights of nightmares like this, I concluded that NO job should give me bad dreams that I wake from sweating,... so I quit. Next, while I was attending Berklee, I got a job as a buffet runner at the Back Bay Sheraton. I worked Saturday and Sunday morning brunch, which required me to be at work at 5am in order to open at 6am. I was playing gigs, so there were occasions when I would arrive home from a gig at 2am... sleep two hours and get up for work. On one such occasion, I was up after two hours of sleep to make it to work on time... trudging along the sidewalk from my apartment to the hotel, there were people driving by still partying from the previous night... it felt wrong on so many levels. That week, I called my boss Dianne and said, "Hi Dianne... Umm... I'm not going to be able to make it into work this weekend... or... ever again."

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Outside of music, have you have a favorite job?

While living in Columbia, MD, one of my earliest jobs was working as a dishwasher at Toby's Dinner Theater.  The dish washing machine was near the double doors that lead to the house, and through a crack in those double doors, I could see the band and specifically, the drummer.  Whether it was Pippin, The Wiz, Nunsense... whatever, as I was loading trays of dirty dishes to send through the washer, I could peer through the double doors and see the drummer and I imagined to myself, "One day I'll be there!"  It was extremely motivating... I never went on to play Toby's Dinner Theater, but it is still there, so there's always a chance! 

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What would you tell your younger self?

In high school, study Spanish instead of French.

Where did you attend high school?

Oakland Mills High School in Columbia, MD

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Where did you attend college?

One year at University of Maryland before transferring to Berklee College of Music

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Who have you studied with?

My most influential instructors include:Grant Menefee (middle school through high school), Larry Bright, Ed Uribe, Ian Froman, John Ramsay and Gary Chaffee

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Who is your favorite drummer?

I have a Rushmore... my top 4 guys. In no particular order: Omar Hakim, Vinny Colaiuta, Philip Fisher and Animal from The Muppet Show... if I could expand my Rushmore to include one more guy, it would be Abe Laboriel, Jr.

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Do you play any other instruments?

The first instrument I had lesson on was piano... I learned a lot, some of which remains an important part of my own personal musical journey.

If you couldn't be a musician, what would you want to be?

Dead.

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What are your current company affiliations?

I am proud to have personal and professional relationships with the following companies:

Pearl Drums & Percussion

Zildjian Cymbals & Sticks

Remo Drumheads

Roland Electronics

BFSD

Sennheiser Electronics

Neumann

Cympad

Epad Practice Pads

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What is your current set up?

Here is my current set up on The Voice however, for recording sessions I rely on options, therefore I have a variety of drums and cymbals to choose from.

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What size sticks do you play?

I play a Zildjian 'Nate Morton' Signature stick. It's a bit of a beefier 5B w/ a chunkier taper and an acorn bead. It is currently only available here: https://natemorton.com/store

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How did you get the gig on The Voice?

That's a VERY long story, but suffice to say, I first worked with Paul Mirkovich, The Voice musical director in 2005 on a CBS show called Rockstar. That relationship lead to several professional opportunities, including The Voice.

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Do you read charts on The Voice?

I do have a ability to read music, however I do not read traditional "charts" on The Voice. I have a method of listening once in rehearsal and creating an arrangement road map with the information I need. It's a system that has evolved over the course of several years. That said, it is teachable and adaptable and works well within the confines of western music.

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What's it like working with the coaches on The Voice?

Every coach that's ever been on the show has brought their particular expertise on matters they consider to be the highest priority with regard to musical performance. Being in the room when they are sharing information from their extensive experience has been quite an education!

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Do you have a favorite coach?

They are all so unique and talented, it's hard to say, but some of my favorites include: Usher, Miley Cyrus, Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande, Chance The Rapper, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Camila Cabello, Reba McEntire, Adam Levine, Shakira, Pharrell Williams, Jennifer Hudson, Nick Jonas, Niall Horan, Dan & Shay, Blake Shelton, CeeLo Green, Gwen Stefani, Michael Buble, Kelsea Ballerini, and Snoop.

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Do you have favorite contestants?

There have been so many incredible performers over the course of all of our seasons, but if I'm honest, the very first winner of the show, Javier Colon, will always be the most meaningful. There have been so many talented singers but Jav being the first winner from our inaugural season will always have a special place in my heart.

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How much do you practice?

In college I might've logged six or seven hours per day... sometimes more. My instructors would say, "Practice now, because when you graduate, you'll be too busy playing and you won't have time." I remember thinking to myself, "I should be so lucky!" These days, I try to grab an occasional hour here or there. That said, in college I spent more time practicing than playing... now I spend FAR more time playing than practicing. In college, I might've spent seven hours practicing whereas today, I might spend seven hours in a rehearsal playing songs with my bandmates. It's not the same, but it is time spent on the instrument and I consider that valuable.

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What inspires you musically?

Different things inspire me in different ways... for example, seeing a drummer play a particular Latin groove on Youtube might inspire me to want to learn it... or Kobe Bryant's "Mamba Mentality" might inspire me to practice... making eye-contact with someone in the audience who's vibing might inspire me to raise my energy level... There are more, but these are just a few examples that come to mind.

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Have you had a favorite gig?

When I was 8 years-old, I spent many hours playing along to the first record I ever owned. The year was 1979 and the record was Dynasty by KISS. Flashing forward... in 2006 I had the opportunity to tour with Paul Stanley, so basically I got to be 8 years-old again, and that was a blast!!!

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Do you have tips on tuning?

I let the shell tell me where the top head wants to live regarding pitch... I tune back and forth, lug to lug, raising the pitch until it hits a point where it sounds choked, then I back down from there... to where it sings... bottom head on toms tuned slightly lower than top for depth... resonant head on snare tuned higher than top for attack. Kick drum,.. both batter and resonant heads tuned just slightly tighter than ripples.

What do you prioritize when learning songs?

When I'm learning songs to play on The Voice or in another "cover band" context, the first thing I want to know is, what's the groove?... next, what is the arrangement road map? What is the order of sections of the song and how many bars is each section? Then, are there particular stops/breaks or unison band figures that I need to catch? Lastly, is there anything "signature" that I should be sure to include, like the In The Air Tonight drum lead-in, or the snare fill from Poison by Bell Biv Devoe. From that point, I let my ears and musical experience guide me. If the song is particularly complex or if I'm playing with the original artist, I may chose to be more specific in my approach, but for most situations, this method gets the job done!

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What do you prioritize when playing songs?

One word: "ENERGY!" When I'm playing a song with a band, the first objective of my job description is "Drive the band." If it's a rock song, I want to make sure it RAWKS!!! If it's a Bossa, I wanna Bossa the heck out of it... if it's big band, I want it to swing like Reggie Jackson... DRIVE THE BAND!

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What do you prioritize when auditioning?

In contrast to leaning songs for cover situation, when auditioning for a gig with a band or artist, I am much more meticulous about the accuracy of parts. That's my first priority because first and foremost, artists want to know that you can accurately perform their songs. To walk into an audition blasting chops instead of playing the song is the quickest way to NOT get the gig. Once I'm confident in the accuracy of the parts, I look for subtleties that I might be able to include that I think not everyone auditioning will notice... for example, if there's shaker on the verse, I might figure out a way to hold a shaker in my right hand with the stick so the shaker bed is created as I play the hats... Something like this may be subtle, and you might not even do it live if you get the gig, but it's the sort of thing that might make your audition more memorable than others. In all probability, EVERYONE auditioning will be a good player... sometimes narrow margins mean getting the gig or not.

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What do you prioritize in life in general?

To quote my friend and outstanding drummer Tony DeAugustine, "A balance between everything."

What platform do you use for your remote lessons?

I use Zoom for my remote lessons. In advance of our lesson, you will receive a link.

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What computer equipment do I need to take remote lessons?

The only computer requirement is any sort of device that has a microphone and a camera. Most of my players use a computer, but a tablet will also work... as will a phone, although the screen size makes it less than ideal.

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What is meant by having "enable original audio" off or on?

By default, Zoom will have "enable original audio" set to OFF. The setting is meant to omit background noise that isn't a human voice. For example, a fan on in the room, or a truck driving past. By default, Zoom thinks drums are "noise" so it will squelch their sound. This is the case with acoustic and electronic drums. For the purposes of remote lessons, you will need to toggle "enable original audio" to ON. Prior to the lesson, I recommend navigating to YouTube and google, "Zoom, enable original audio for my (your device here)." Note: this setting defaults to OFF at the beginning of every meeting, so the required steps are necessary each time.

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What drum equipment do I need to take remote lessons?

There are no specific drum requirements. An acoustic drum set, an electronic drum set, perhaps a practice pad if the primary focus is hand technique... a pair of drum sticks and any "playable" surface will do.

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Do I need to have a webcam?

An outboard webcam is not required as long as your device has a camera. That said, the ability to place the camera locationally independent of a computer might increase set-up flexibility.

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Do I need to have headphones?

Headphones are not required, although they may improve sound quality on your end.

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Do I need to have a microphone?

Microphones are not required as long as your device has an internal microphone, however, a USB microphone might enhance the sound quality on my end.

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What equipment do you use?

For my remote lessons, I am currently using a Roland vDrums electronic drum set and a Sennheiser HMD300 Pro headset. They are plugged into my Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 digital interface. The digital interface allows me to simultaneously send high quality audio from multiple audio sources and hear them in real time. The interface is connected via USB-C to an Apple Mac mini. For a video monitor, I use a 42" flat screen TV that I stole from my son when he went to college. Lastly, I use four Logitech USB webcams... front view, hands view, over head, and foot cam.