Interview With Jovan Dawkins, Drummer, Producer
Jovan J. Dawkins is a hands on type of musician that is not only heavy in his drum career but also heavy in music production. He has been playing the drums for 19 years and professionally for 7 years. J. Dawkins was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington and was inspired to play the drums in church at the age of 1 and 2.
Jovan is the music director and drummer for Grammy award winning, Sir Mix Alot. He's also one of the drummers for Jimmy Fisher and Contagious Praise, and Citadel Praise. On the music production side of his career, he is signed to AMP Music Group (Warner Bros Music/Zomba Music Publishing) as a score and music producer. As a company, their credits include Brittany Spears, R. Kelly, Backstreet Boys, Macy Gray, Justin Timberlake, Nysnc, Linkin Park, Korn, E40, Mugzilla, Score music for B.E.T, MTV, and VH1.
In this interview, Dawkins discusses his dual career as both a performing drummer and music producer. He shares insights into how he balances these different aspects of his musical life and how each informs the other. His experience working across diverse genres from hip-hop to gospel provides a unique perspective on versatility in the modern music industry.
Dawkins offers practical advice for drummers interested in expanding into production, including essential skills to develop, software and equipment recommendations, and strategies for building a network in the production world. He also discusses his approach to creating drum parts that serve both the live performance and recorded contexts.
