KENNY ARONOFF

Kenny Aronoff wasn’t named the best Pop/Rock Drummer for five years or Best Studio Drummer for four years by Modern Drummer readers for no reason. His talent behind the drums makes him one of the most influential and busiest drummers in the music industry.

Born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, in 1953, Kenny taught himself to play drums as a child. He joined his first band at ten and continued playing in local bands until he was in high school. However, when he was sixteen, Kenny chose to concentrate on studying classical music. Members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and, in particular, infamous tympanist Vic Firth, educated Kenny. He also studied at the University of Massachusetts before leaving his native town for Bloomington, Indiana. Kenny earned his bachelors degree and a Performer’s Certificate from Indiana University and during the summers he played at music festivals for the education and experience.

After graduating from Indiana University, several orchestras offered him positions playing timpani. However, Kenny returned to the East Coast and studied drum set and played in Boston and New York, focusing on jazz and fusion music. After just one year, Kenny retuned to Indiana, where he played for several years in a local band.

Kenny’s talent quickly outgrew the Midwest club circuit and in 1980, he joined the John Mellencamp band, whose popularity peaked in the 1980s with albums like American Fool, Uh Huh, and Dance Naked. Kenny toured with Mellencamp for seventeen years and recorded ten albums. While working with Mellencamp in the 1980s, Kenny solidified his role as a studio musician, recording with an impressive range of artists - Bob Dylan, Jon Bon Jovi, Bob Seger, Belinda Carlisle, Indigo Girls, Meat Loaf, Lisa Germano, Melissa Etheridge, The Rolling Stones, Joe Cocker, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Alice Cooper, Travis Tritt, and Willie Nelson. More recently, Kenny recorded with Rod Stewart, Avril Lavigne, Puddle of Mudd, Meat Loaf, John Fogerty, Tony Iommi, and Melissa Etheridge.

In addition to the Mellencamp tours, Kenny has joined these acts on the road as well: The Smashing Pumpkins, Bob Seger, Melissa Etheridge, John Fogerty, Joe Cocker, Willie Nelson, and Michelle Branch.

Kenny also capitalizes on his talent by helping students learn from him. He produced instructional videos (Power Workout One, Power Workout Two, and Laying it Down: The Basics of Rock Drumming) and performed many drum clinics. He also instructed as an associate professor at Indiana University in the 1990s and sponsors a scholarship to a percussion student each year.

Kenny continues recording and performing with an array of talented artists. In January 2008, this included Like A Storm, Marco Mendoza, Steve Wengart, Soren Anderson, JR Richards, Jon Peter Lewis, and Brent Lundy. In February 2008, Kenny performed live at the 50th Grammy Awards with John Fogerty, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Little Richard. They played “Comin’ Down the Road” (a song Fogerty wrote for Creedence Clearwater Revival and never recorded), “Great Balls of Fire,” and “Good Golly Miss Molly.”