097 – Billy Freeman: Drumming for Dustin Lynch, Facing Your Doubts and Fears, Discovering Drums from an Early Age

A Native of Garland Texas, Billy Freeman grew up around local Opry houses and by the age of 12 took over the job as house drummer for the Garland Opry and performed every Saturday night till the age of 18. In addition to the Opry gig, Billy stayed involved in every music activity he could throughout high school. Beyond high school, his passion for drumming continued. 

(From the on-line publication – Nashville Three-Sixty) – By age 20, he was a proven player attracting attention. He did session work and played some gigs with LeAnn’s (Rimes) band members and spent a decade in the Dallas music scene networking and freelancing a burgeoning career. At one time, he was juggling playing with ten different artists. He met a lot of players during his years playing the club circuit and focused on building real relationships from his associations. Billy wasn’t content to be a casual bystander in the Dallas music scene. His intent was to be as present and vital as a pulse in his community, creating a body of work to further and sustain his musical growth.

This experience put Billy on the fast track to becoming an extremely competent player and in 2012 beat out over 5000 other drummers to make the Guitar Center Drum-Off grand finals. This led to his touring gig for a year with country legend, Neal McCoy. In 2013 he moved to Nashville after successfully auditioning for singer Dustin Lynch and has been touring with him ever since.

In this podcast, Billy talks about:

Learning from others while on tour

Discovering the drums at a very early age

Understanding subtlety in musical drummers at an early age

The Dallas music scene

Responsibilities of a musical director

What lead to the Dustin Lynch gig

Preparing for a future off the road

Facing your doubts and fears

Maintaining your chops while on the road

His responsibilities with Dustin’s gig

Billy endorses: Ludwig drums, Zildjian cymbals, Vic Firth sticks, Kelly Shu mic mounts and 1964 in-ears

This episode is sponsored by Sonor drums