Justin Bieber's Drummer, Star of the Trap Jazz Film -- His Journey, Life on Tour with Bieber, Usher, Mary J. Blige, and What He Built with WETHEBAND in Atlanta
Devon 'Stixx' Taylor has been described as likely the most working touring drummer alive -- a title backed by a resume that includes years behind the kit for Justin Bieber, Usher, Mary J. Blige, Rita Ora, and Nicki Minaj. He has played rooms that most drummers only dream about, for crowds that number in the hundreds of thousands, alongside artists who define the top tier of global popular music. And then he went and built something entirely his own: the Trap Jazz movement, which became the subject of a Hulu documentary film.
In this conversation with Elmo, Devon breaks down what life on the road actually looks like at that level -- the preparation, the pressure, the relationships, and what it demands from a drummer technically and mentally to hold down a stadium show night after night. He talks about Atlanta, WETHEBAND, and what he was trying to build with Trap Jazz before the world caught up to it. And he tells the story of his journey from where he started to where he is in a way that is specific, honest, and genuinely inspiring for any musician trying to figure out how to go all the way.
"Every gig I got, I treated it like it was the biggest gig of my life. Because at that moment, it was."
What it actually means to be the drummer for one of the biggest tours in the world: the preparation, the pressure, the rehearsal process, and what Devon has learned about excellence from playing at the highest level of the touring industry for years with an artist whose shows leave no room for error.
The stories behind the other major gigs -- how Devon got them, what each artist demanded from him as a drummer, and what he absorbed from working alongside some of the most accomplished performers in the history of popular music. What the best artists in the world have in common when they are preparing to perform.
Where the idea came from, what Devon was hearing that nobody else was combining, and what it felt like to build something from scratch that eventually attracted enough attention to become a Hulu documentary. His perspective on the creative risk of doing something genuinely new in a business that mostly rewards familiarity.
The collective Devon built in Atlanta -- what it is, who it includes, what they are trying to do, and why Atlanta specifically is the right place to be building something at the intersection of live music, hip-hop production, and jazz. His read on Atlanta's creative scene and what makes it unlike anywhere else in music right now.
Devon's full story from the beginning: where he grew up, how he started playing drums, the decisions and sacrifices that took him from where he was to where he is, and the specific mindset he has carried throughout a career that has required him to be ready every time an opportunity appeared -- whether he felt ready or not.
What Devon would tell a young drummer trying to build the kind of career he has built: the specific things that matter most, the mistakes he sees talented musicians make most often, and the particular thing he believes separates the drummers who end up on the biggest stages from the ones who never quite break through despite having the talent.
Devon on what it takes to be the drummer for Justin Bieber's world tour: the audition process, the preparation, the specific technical and musical demands of the gig, and what he learned about himself as a player and a professional from the experience of doing it at that level for that long.
The Trap Jazz origin story from Devon's perspective -- the specific moment, the creative conversations, and what it felt like to be building something that felt important before anyone outside their circle had heard it. His account of the early days before the documentary, before Hulu, before the world knew the name.
On playing for massive audiences every night: what Devon has developed mentally to perform at the highest level consistently -- the pre-show rituals, the focus, the way he manages the physical and psychological demands of doing a stadium show night after night on a world tour.
What he learned from Mary J. Blige: Devon's account of playing for one of the greatest performers of her generation and the specific things he observed about how she approaches the stage, the audience, and the music that have stayed with him and shaped how he thinks about performance.
His philosophy on preparation and opportunity: Devon's most direct statement of what he believes about the relationship between how you prepare and what you get -- the specific discipline he has brought to every gig, and why he thinks the musicians who stay ready are the ones who end up getting called.
Devon at full candor: a gifted, grounded, and genuinely thoughtful musician talking openly about everything from the grind of touring to the creative joy of building Trap Jazz -- the kind of conversation that makes you want to be better at whatever it is you do.