Chad Smith
Chad Smith is an American musician who is the drummer of the rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith has played with the Chili Peppers since 1988, appearing on ten of the band's studio albums and becoming the band's longest-serving drummer in its history. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot, formed in 2008, and of the all-instrumental outfit Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats, formed in 2007. He worked with the Chicks on Taking the Long Way, an album that won five Grammy Awards in 2007.
Smith has recorded with various artists including Glenn Hughes, Johnny Cash, John Fogerty, Jennifer Nettles, Kid Rock, Jake Bugg, the Avett Brothers, Joe Satriani, Post Malone, Eddie Vedder, Brandi Carlile, Lana Del Rey, Halsey, The Chicks, Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, Hardy and Lady Gaga. In 2010, joined by Dick Van Dyke and Leslie Bixler, he released Rhythm Train, a children's album which featured Smith singing and playing various instruments. In 2020, Smith co-wrote and performed as part of the backing band on Ozzy Osbourne's album, Ordinary Man, and again in 2022 on Patient Number 9. That same year, Smith was a member of Eddie Vedder's backing band, The Earthlings, after co-writing and recording the album, Earthling. He was the primary drummer on Iggy Pop's Every Loser the following year.
Spin magazine placed Smith at number 91 on their list of the "100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music" in May 2013. Readers of UK-based Rhythm magazine ranked Smith and Red Hot Chili Pepper bassist Flea the fourth-greatest rhythm section of all time in their June 2013 issue. Smith is also known for his charity work especially with young musicians. He has been a lobbyist in support of music education in U.S. public schools. Smith is also the host of the PBS concert series Landmarks Live in Concert, which began in January 2017.
Early life
Smith was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the third child of Joan and Curtis Smith. He spent most of his childhood in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he graduated from Lahser High School in 1980. Part of his schooling was spent at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Illinois. He started to play drums at age seven and grew up listening mainly to bands such as Rush, the Rolling Stones, Humble Pie, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, the Who, the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Kiss.Smith did not receive formal drum lessons, and gained drumming experience by playing in school bands. He ran away from home when he was 15, but returned home after a summer.
Smith spent his early years in various rock bands, starting in high school with a band called Paradise which won a battle of the bands in Birmingham, Michigan, in 1977. Following this, Smith played with Pharroh and Michigan-based band Toby Redd. Pharroh's percussionist Larry Fratangelo, who also worked with Parliament-Funkadelic, introduced Smith to R&B and funk music and taught him how to play funk. Smith said, "I think up until then, I was a drummer. Once I studied with Larry, I turned into a musician." Funk drummers David Garibaldi, Jabo Starks, Clyde Stubblefield, and Greg Errico caught his attention and influenced his style. Smith decided to move to California to pursue his musical aspirations.
Music career
Red Hot Chili Peppers (1988–present)
In 1988, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were looking for a replacement for their drummer D.H. Peligro, who had recently been fired. Already into the process of working on their fourth studio album and hiring new guitarist John Frusciante the band held open auditions for a new drummer. Smith was the last drummer to audition for the band and the band felt that on looks alone, Smith would be the wrong fit as he looked more hair-metal than punk. Nonetheless, the band were impressed by his audition. Singer Anthony Kiedis admired Smith and found his persistence impressive.Smith joined the Chili Peppers in December 1988. Within a few months, he was recording his first album with the band, Mother's Milk, which was released in 1989. Smith reflected on joining the band in a 2012 interview by saying "I remember thinking, 'Oh, cool, they have a record deal. Great! I'd love to be in a band that has a record deal. We started playing, and right away we just hit it off musically. I was like, 'Man, this is a blast! These guys are great!'... We were just doing what we do. We just jammed, which is what we still do today. It's very similar." Smith has recorded ten albums with the band since 1989 with their most recent, Return of the Dream Canteen, being released in 2022.
Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats (2007–present)
In 2007, Smith, along with fellow Glenn Hughes alumni, guitarist Jeff Kollman and keyboardist Ed Roth, formed an all-instrumental band inspired by their shared love of 1970s funk and fusion. Still unnamed at the time, the group, rounded out by bassist Kevin Chown, debuted at the 2008 NAMM Show in Anaheim, California. The band has released two studio albums and a double live disc as Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats since its inception.Chickenfoot (2008–present)
Following a lengthy world tour in support of Stadium Arcadium, the Chili Peppers decided to take a break in 2008. During this break, Smith joined the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot, whose other members are Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani and Michael Anthony. The group has released two studio albums, a live album and a box set to date with Smith. Due to touring commitments with the Chili Peppers in 2011, Smith was unable to tour with Chickenfoot and was replaced by Kenny Aronoff. In 2012, Smith rejoined Chickenfoot for a four-song encore and the band briefly reunited for only two shows on May 7, and May 8, 2016, at Harrah's Showroom at South Lake Tahoe.During the show, the band debuted a new song titled "Divine Termination". In June 2016, Smith discussed the future of Chickenfoot touring and recording new music saying that "everyone has different things going on. We really enjoy playing together, but with my schedule I don't see us playing too much. I would love to make some new music with those guys, but we'd have to be in the same room at the same time. I just don't know. It's up in the air. I love playing with those guys, though. It's a real treat.
Other projects
Smith released 2010's Rhythm Train, a critically acclaimed children's album which he recorded with Dick Van Dyke and Leslie Bixler.Smith released an app in March 2012, which is a free mobile application for iPhone, iPad, and Android devices and features his "Drummer GPS". The GPS section of the app spotlights drummers Smith has been influenced by and those he regards as some of the best modern drummers. In May 2013, he launched In Conversation with Chad Smith, his own podcast through MusicRadar where he interviews other musical artists.
Smith joined Sammy Hagar in the studio to work on music for what would become Hagar's sixteenth studio album. They were joined by guitarist Neal Schon and bassist Michael Anthony and according to Hagar, it was the rebirth of his 1980s band HSAS, which featured Schon and two other members.
In 2013, Smith joined jazz musician Jon Batiste and bassist/producer Bill Laswell to create a unique musical group to score a film that had yet to be written and would never be made. The album, The Process, was released on November 4, 2014.
Starting on January 20, 2017, Smith began hosting Landmarks Live in Concert, an eight-episode concert series on PBS in which Smith will sit down and discuss music with various artists. The first two episodes featured Alicia Keys and Brad Paisley.
Smith performs drums on the Lorne Balfe composed score for The Lego Batman Movie. The soundtrack for the animated film was released on February 3, 2017.
On May 28, 2018, Smith along with co-host and Yahoo Entertainment music editor Lyndsey Parker, began their own music radio talk show on SiriusXM titled VOLUME West which airs every Monday. The duo will talk music with artists, industry leaders, friends and they will also interview their guests about their favorite songs, albums, and artists.
Smith performs drums on the Post Malone song "Take What You Want" from his third album Hollywood's Bleeding. The song also features Black Sabbath lead singer Ozzy Osbourne and rapper Travis Scott. That collaboration with Post Malone led to the creation of Osbourne's 2020 album, Ordinary Man, which Smith co-wrote along with Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan and producer Andrew Watt. Smith also performed drums on every track. On December 17, 2020, it was announced that the next studio album by Ozzy Osbourne was halfway done and would again feature Smith along with Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo and drummer Taylor Hawkins from Foo Fighters.
On January 1, 2021, Post Malone during his Bud Light Seltzer Sessions New Year's Eve 2021 livestream show was joined by Smith, Slash from Guns N' Roses, Chris Chaney from Jane's Addiction and producer/guitarist Andrew Watt for a performance of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs" and "Rooster" by Alice In Chains. Smith contributed to the charity tribute album The Metallica Blacklist, released in September 2021, backing Miley Cyrus on her cover of the Metallica song "Nothing Else Matters".
Smith performs drums on Ozzy Osbourne's 2022 album, Patient Number 9. Smith also co-wrote two of the songs on the album.
Smith and Flea, Josh Klinghoffer collaborated with Morrissey on his upcoming album Bonfire of Teenagers, which was supposed to be released in February 2023, but in December 2022 it was announced that its future is in limbo, as Capitol Records decided not to release it.
Smith performs on seven of the songs and also co-wrote five songs on Iggy Pop's 2022 album, Every Loser. To promote the album, Smith will be part of Pop's backing band called The Losers which consists of Josh Klinghoffer, Duff McKagan and Andrew Watt.
It was announced in March 2024 that Smith will appear as himself in Spinal Tap II, the upcoming sequel to the 1984 mockumentary film This is Spinal Tap.
Smith performs on the song "Killah" from Lady Gaga's 2025 album Mayhem.
Smith (along with former Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer performs on a majority of the songs on the 2025 album, Who Believes in Angels? by Elton John and Brandi Carlile. Smith performed with John and Carlile during their April 5, 2025 appearance on Saturday Night Live and with them during April 6, 2025 television special An Evening with Elton John and Brandi Carlile that aired the following night on CBS.
On July 5, 2025, Smith performed at Back to the Beginning, an all-day concert held in Birmingham as a final farewell show for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. Smith performed in Tom Morello's All Stars supergroup which included Morello, Steven Tyler, Sammy Hagar, Nuno Bettencourt and other musicians. Smith also had a drum off with Travis Barker and Rudy Sarzo. The concert also raised $190 million for charity. Osbourne would pass away seventeen days later.
Smith will appear in the upcoming Ozzy Osbourne: No Escape From Now documentary that will stream on Paramount+ on October 7, 2025 and will document the final six years of Osbourne's life.
In December 2025, Smith, Slash, Duff McKagan, and Andrew Watt performed under the band name The Dirty Bats. They were joined onstage by Bruno Mars, Brandi Carlile, Anthony Kiedis, Yungblud, and Eddie Vedder.