artist bio:

annette musick

Annette Musick lives for the beat. During her lifetime journey through rhythm, she has played alongside both the old masters of drumming and the pioneers of cutting-edge sounds, absorbing the many traditions of groove and transforming them into a style that is fresh, funky, and totally unique. From the moment her small seven-year old hands touched the practice pads to learn snare rudiments for the first time, Annette has been on a nonstop exploration of rhythm that has made her, at 30 years of age, one of the leading percussionists in Texas & the Twin Cities. Annette’s work can be found on countless studio tracks and live DJ sets, spicing up an entire spectrum of experimental, downtempo, house, techno, jazz, hip-hop, and drum & bass beats with her fiery rhythmic flavor. Upholding the Texas-based Rebel Crew way in Minnesota, Annette continues to search for new ways to work her staccato swagger into the mix to keep you shakin’ your hips and sweatin’ on the dancefloor.

Her heart-felt passion for the drums began decades ago. While other girls her age were ambling their way through elementary school, Annette was already pounding out beats on her drums. In high school, she was first exposed to jazz and funk as a member of the P.M. Jazz band, and had a stint as the drum captain of a 50-piece marching drum line, which garnered national recognition. Only 15 years old, Annette’s talents earned her professional studio recording time, after which she began to compose music and continue perfecting her skills on congas.

In the mid-‘90s, the rave and underground dance scene took root in Houston, and Annette was there from the beginning, coordinating trance-like drum circles and working with other established musicians at the parties. Mainly focusing on the African Djembe drum and the aboriginal Didgeridoo instrument, she played alongside top-notch drummers like Alafia Gaidi (D.R.U.M) and Eliah Kolozos (The Jeepney’s) in clubs around the city. With a range of traditional drumming styles under her belt, Annette felt the need to break from tradition, and push her jazz and funk styles into new frontiers of groove.

The next phase of Annette’s journey of rhythm had her exploring and learning music all over the States. After a short gig playing with a popular Houston reggae, funk, and drum & bass group, Boom Theory 8, Annette moved to Austin to take up a club residency playing congas and MCing. Her groundbreaking collaborations with Monk, made the band the first group to combine live instruments, turntables, and effects professors for live performances in the state of Texas.

Annette Musick’s return to Houston coincided with the launch of the widely acclaimed Groovematters project. Teaming up with the brazen DJ and producer Sista Stroke, and the sultry local vocalist and songwriter Karina Nistal, this new collective of musicians gained immediate local and national attention. In addition to being booked for the Winter Music Conference in Miami in 2001, the Groovematters Collective has headlined with artists such as Run DMC, Joey Beltram, Funky Techno Tribe, Afrika Bambaata, DJ DB, Mark Farina, King Britt, and Woody McBride among others. In addition, Annette’s performance with the Revolutionary Music Collective at Safehouse (Chicago) is still talked about, and her two shows playing alongside the celebrated Italian minimal techno producer, Alexi Delano, are personal and popular favorites.

Now in 2006, Annette continues to push the evolution of her sound through ongoing work with Groovematters and her forays into the world of electronic beat science. Her conga lines were featured on many of OneThirtyRecordings releases from Jevne (label owner), and the two can be heard live playing in clubs across the Twin Cities. She is still record collecting and playing around with her MPC, and hopes to become a more established producer over the next few years. She sits in with countless musical groups in the area, covering many genres, but she is still searching for the perfect long term or touring group. Expect to hear much more from this leading lady of urban beats!