Issue 15 - Sabu Satsha - November 2020

INTERVIEWS LESSONS ARTICLES 

ISSUE 15 

November 2020 

online lessons 

ONE PATTERN 

TEN FILLS 

Free Lessons 

now available! 

ARTICLES & REVIEWS 

Interviews & features 

LOURENS MEYER 

Part of the Lifeblood of Meinl 

KEEGAN AMORIM 

Living large in Dubai 

ACOUSTIC VS 

ELECTRONIC 

By Sean ‘STYX’ Nunan 

PATIENCE 

IS A VIRTUE 

By Warren van Wyk 

LEEROY SAULS 

My journey with Bra Hugh 

SABU 

SATSHA 

He is essentially a household staple of 

South African drumming. 

WE HAVE A PROUDLY AND PURELY SOUTH AFRICAN ISSUE FOR YOU THIS TIME AROUND.

WHAT’S 

INSIDE 

ISSUE 15 

interviews & features 

14 

Lourens Meyer 

(Meinl Cymbals) 

24 

Keegan Amorim 

(Dubai Circuit Drummer) 

28 

Leeroy Sauls 

(Session Drummer - Hugh Masekela) 

48 

Derrick Badenhorst 

(PE Drum Educator) 

38 

Sabu Satsha 

(SA Gospel Legend) 

COVER PHOTOGRAPHY: LOUIS R. MALHERBE II 

articles & reviews 

6 

Acoustic VS Electronic 

(by Sean 'STYX' Nunan) 

34 

Drum Charts 

(Parasite Eve - BMTH & Jy Is Die Storm - Dewald Wasserfall) 

48 

Patience Is A Virtue 

(by Warren van Wyk) 

55 

One Pattern - Ten Fills #1 

(Lesson - Warren van Wyk) 

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Editor’s Editor’s Letter Letter 

The otherside 

It feels like every issue that goes 

ering the nightmare that peo- 

Editors 

Louis R. Malherbe 

by I find myself putting the same 

ple have gone through around 

Warren van Wyk 

old hope out there. Hope for 

the world, any type of return 

Content Editor 


the entertainment industry to 

to old habits will be especial- 

Art Director 


return back to normal. It's tak- 

ly welcomed. I'm hoping that 

Designer 


en some time, and it is finally 

this will be the last message I 

Senior Writer 


showing signs of doing just that. 

will be putting out concern- 

Junior Writer 


Normal might not be the actu- 

ing Covid-19 and its ever reach- 

Contributors 

Sean Nunan 

al normal we were always ac- 

ing destruction. Stay strong 

customed to, but at least things 

and see you on the other side. 

seem to be stabilizing. Consid- 

Louis R. Malherbe II 

EDITOR 

PHOTOGRAPHY: DENEKA LOUIS R. PENISTON MALHERBE II 

November 2020 | SA DRUMMER | 5

ACOUSTIC 

VS 

ELECTRONIC 

the requirements of the beginner and 

weekend warrior drummer are very different from 

that of a professional gigging or touring player. 

By Sean 'STYX' Nunan 

6 | SA DRUMMER | November 2020

ACOUSTIC VS ELECTRIC 

T 

his question and 

how do you get endorsements 

are topics 

that come up often 

amongst us drummers. 

In most cases, a professional 

drummer will require high-end equipment 

and won't blink to buy the best 

possible gear for their buck. In contrast, 

starter drummers tend to be more cautious 

with their purchases in their early 

playing days. This is the case at least 

until they have established that their 

interest in drumming is long term, and 

worth a more significant investment. 

These days both electronic and 

acoustic drum sets are equally accessible 

in terms of pricing. Hence, the 

primary consideration comes down 

to practicality and playability. From a 

practical perspective, space and surroundings 

would be the drummer's 

most significant concerns. The latter is 

often the most giant objective to overcome 

when choosing what the right 

drumming solution is for you. Are you 

able to make significant levels of noise 

from where your kit is set up? There is 

no getting around the fact that acoustic 

drums can be loud, and this often rules 

them out if you reside in an apartment 

building, blocks of flats or townhouse 

complex. Unless you have very tolerant 

neighbours, or you use the sound 

dampening options currently available 

you should consider purchasing 

an electronic drum kit. 

L 

et's take a look at the definitions 

of the different drum 

options available: Acoustic 

drums are what you would consider 

'traditional' drums, made with wooden 

shells and sometimes include metal 

snare drums, and metal cymbals and 

hardware. Electronic drums are pads 

made with rubber, plastic, or mesh 

drumheads, and the sounds are produced 

from a small electronic 'box' that 

we call a sound module. 

A Hybrid Drum kit is a drum kit that 

incorporates both acoustic and electronic 

drum elements. This could be an 

acoustic kit with triggered pads, electronic 

percussion triggers and/or electronic 

cymbals or an external sampler 

incorporated into your acoustic setup. 

If sound and volume control is your 

primary concern, you should probably 

abandon all considerations of an acoustic 

drum set. Also, by the same token, 

it is not accurate to assume that electronic 

drums make no sound at all. The 

sound of the sticks hitting the pads, 

plastic cymbals, and especially the 

bass drum beater hitting the bass pad 

can be a source of annoyance for the 

non-drummers in the household. 

While some of the smaller sized electronic 

drum sets take up marginally 

less space, the emphasis here should 

be on the term "marginal". You really 

need a floor space of 2 x 3 square metres 

to comfortably accommodate a drum 

set and the drummer. There's nothing 

more annoying than being forced to sit 

too close to your drums due to space 

restrictions. This can also affect your 

technique and posture and is something 

to be considered when determining 

where your drums will live. 

8 | SA DRUMMER | November 2020 

PHOTOGRAPHY PREVIOUS SPREAD: NOMAD SOUL PHOTOGRAPHY

Not Holding Back 

Sean Nunan's Roland 

TD-50 electronic kit 

A 

COUSTIC DRUMS: An acoustic 

drum kit is a set of drums 

and cymbals designed to be 

played as one instrument. A standard 

5-piece drum kit consists of a bass 

drum, a snare drum, and two mounted 

toms on or above the bass drum and 

a floor-standing tom. Cymbals include 

hi-hats (which are two cymbals played 

together to create a 'chick' sound, a ride 

cymbal and one or two crash cymbals. 

The drum sound is produced by striking 

the drums or cymbals with a drum 

stick or mallet. The number of drums 

and the sizes of each may vary depending 

on many things. 

BENEFITS OF ACOUSTIC DRUMS: They 

are great for acoustic styles of music 

including rock, pop, jazz, blues, and 

funk. They are perfect for high volume, 

high energy playing. Responsive to 

your touch and feel when striking the 

drums. They don't need you to run cables 

or have a power source to play. It can 

be mic'ed up for larger environments. 

LIMITATIONS: Practice can be more 

difficult if you have neighbours 

nearby or if you can only practice 

at night due to the loud natural 

response of acoustic drums. Often 

an acoustic kit takes up more 

space than its electronic counterpart. 

Acoustic kits require regular tuning, 

an art which takes years of practice 

to be able to do well. To get a decent 

sounding acoustic kit costs quite 

a lot of money. In bigger venues, the 

acoustic kit will need to be mic'ed up. 

Decent quality drum microphones are 

a large investment as they can cost a 

PHOTOGRAPHY: SEAN NUNAN 


ACOUSTIC VS ELECTRIC 

lot of money. Drum heads and sticks 

will have to be replaced quite frequently 

depending on how often you play. 

E 

LECTRONIC DRUMS: An electronic 

drum kit is essentially 

a collection of sample pads set 

up in the same way as an acoustic drum 

kit. The pads themselves are designed 

to produce as little acoustic sound as 

possible, other than the dead sound of 

the wooden drum sticks hitting rubber. 

The drum kit has to be plugged into an 

amplifier, speaker, PA system, or a pair 

of headphones to be heard. They are ideal 

for practicing when the volume has 

to be kept to a minimum. 

BENEFITS OF ELECTRONIC DRUMS: 

Great for low/zero volume practicing. 

Electronic pads are often smaller than 

acoustic drums, so if space is a problem, 

an electronic kit could be your 

best solution. You don't need to buy a 

separate sample pad as with intermediate/advanced 

electronic drum kits you 

can programme specific sample sounds 

to each pad. Most electronic kits come 

equipped with a built-in metronome 

which is an excellent tool for practicing. 

Electronic kits don't require any 

tuning. Mesh pads should, however, 

be tightened evenly for the sticks to 

bounce on the heads. The drum and 

cymbal samples have already been 

EQed within each preset bank. There 

is also a great demand for electronic 

drum kits for drummers who play predominantly 

electronic music. The wide 

array of digital sounds available makes 

electronics drum kits suitable for styles 

of music which require more than just 

traditional drums. 

LIMITATIONS: Beginner electronic 

drum kits have limited features. You 

are often stuck with a handful of presets 

and have no control over individual 

drum samples or overall EQ. As digital 

technology advances at a rapid pace, 

your high-quality electronic drum kit 

will become obsolete relatively quickly. 

Developing a poor dynamic balance 

between different parts of the kit can 

sometimes become an issue. On an 

electric kit, it's easy simply to turn the 

hi-hat volume down if you think it's too 

loud, rather than hitting the hi-hat at a 

softer volume. 

Unless you are looking at the topend 

models, the drum pads themselves 

are often undersized, with the average 

diameter of a drum pad being 8 inches. 

These pads are mounted on a rack system 

that comes with the set. The rack 

system results in the drums being compacted 

together. While this might have 

some advantages with saving a small 

amount of space, the downside is that 

the playing position can affect your posture 

and how you approach the drums. 

I 

N CONCLUSION: Use whichever 

option is going to benefit 

your musical situation. In my 

opinion, there is no right and wrong, 

always serve the music you play. 

Keep an open mind – Technology is 

here to stay, so embrace it. Most guitarists 

play both acoustic and electric guitar 

options. Hence, as a drummer, be 

open to other options to enhance your 

sound. Assess your needs and environment 

as a drummer as well as the music 

you play. 

How about the best of both! Combining 

acoustic and electronic together in 

your set up! In the next issue, we cover 

the future of hybrid drumming. Stay 

Tuned. STYX Out! 


PHOTOGRAPHY: NOMAD SOUL PHOTOGRAPHY


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Lourens Meyer 

How a Bloemfontein boy chased his International Dream to join one of the Biggest Cymbal 

Companies in the World. 

• Lourens.Meyer_At_Meinl • Lourens.Meyer.3 • 

The start of my journey 

coming over 

here happened by 

pure accident when 

I was on a Euro-Trip 

in 2011. I was working 

for Marshall Music in Cape Town 

at that stage. I came to Germany, and 

one of the guys here at Meinl heard that 

I was coming, and he dropped me an 

email saying that I should swing by if 

I was in the area and I was like "Yeah 

dude!!". Do you know how big Germany 

is? I might have been 4 to 5 hours away, 

but unknown to me Meinl was only 35 

minutes away from where I was staying. 

I had a free day, so I went through, 

and I got to see the warehouse and see 

how everything got made and how clinical 

it is. I was at that stage semi-familiar 

with the brand because, in 2010, my 

brother in law brought home a Modern 

Drummer DVD which featured Chris 

Adler from the Lamb of God. I was just 

like "Who is this dude?" because I loved 

the music. I noticed that he was playing 

this Meinl brand which I had never 

heard of before, and I was like "What's 

this?" It looked so interesting, so I did 

some research because I only knew of 

the Major Cymbal brands at that stage. 

I knew who Chris Adler was and Benny 

Greb was also starting to break out, so 

I already knew the brand a bit. 

The products weren't the only thing 

that sold me on the brand it was also the 

people. If you know who Norbert Saemann 

is, you know that he is the guy 

that signed Benny Greb, Anika Nilles, 

Josh Nickel, you name it! He is a massive 

figurehead in the drumming community. 

We then have Udo Heubeck, who 

is the general manager of the company 

and who has a great mind. So, I knew 

who all these people were, and then I 

walk into the Meinl office, and there 

they all were. It was so intimidating 

seeing them right in front of you. The 

first person I ran into was Mrs Meinl. 

The Meinl Family consists of Mr and 

Mrs Meinl (Reinhold and Ingrid Meinl) 

along with their Son - Alexander Meinl 

and his wife Mona Meinl, with the 

founding father of the company Mr Ro- 


PHOTOGRAPHY: LORENZ ROST

November 2020 | SA DRUMMER | 15

Lourens Meyer 

land Meinl who launched Meinl Cymbals 

in 1951. † Roland Meinl (* 4 March 

1929 - 4 December 2007). Even though 

these people didn't know who I was, 

they were still so welcoming. I thought 

to myself "You got to be kidding me, 

these people are so incredibly friendly 

and inviting." They spoke about the 

company with energy and enthusiasm. 

If was so refreshing coming from 

South Africa and experiencing that 

the company was not just a job to employees, 

but an absolute way of life. 

To give you an idea, the people working 

in the gardens make Meinl signs 

out of roses, and I'm like "What's this? 

haha." It captured my imagination so 

much, not only because of how meticulous 

they are about the product but 

about how welcoming they are. The big 

thing that got me was how they cared 

so much about a small little South African 

dude that played Metal Music. 

They would take time out of their day 

to show me everything. They offered me 

an endorsement and I was like "Huh? 

What are you talking about, haha." In 

South Africa, you sometimes get a simple 

endorsement from the distributor 

and not from the actual company, so I 

was super surprised. It blew my mind 

so much that they would care about 

me. When I walked out of there to go 

home, I just said to myself that I had to 

work for this company, this was in 2011. 

Somehow or someway, I wanted to be 

part of that and be involved in whatever 

way possible. 

They got me excited about the brand 

in so many ways, and I wanted to share 

that excitement that they had because I 

felt that was lacking in the South African 

retail market. These people are excited 

about a product, and they want to share 

that excitement. I came back to South 

Africa, I got the opportunity to work 

closely with the Distributor of Meinl in 

South Africa, and give my feedback and 

input on the brand and Development of 

Meinl in South Africa. I just indulged 

myself in the brand and absorbed everything 

that I possibly could because 

I was so excited. When you are that excited, 

you are working 24 hours a day 

because you want to continue learning 

and continue pushing. I just knew that 

I had to share this Meinl message to the 

world and not in the way of getting people 

to buy the brand but for people to 

understand the brand and understand 

the attractiveness and vibe around the 

brand. I continuously worked on understanding 

the brand, and how to effectively 

share the passion and excitement 

for the product and brand within 

the retail market I was involved in. 

We really started moving the product 

but more than moving the product we 

started getting people to understand 

the ethos of the company and what we 

stood for in the company. I felt so cool 

to be involved with something like that. 

"I continuously 

worked on 

understanding the 

brand, and how to 

effectively share 

the passion and 

excitement for the 

product and brand." 

The guys in Germany would 

email me directly, and 

that would make me feel 

so overwhelmed. When 

the company had their 50th anniversary, 

they sent me a laptop bag and a 

t-shirt, and that meant so much to me. 

I spent the next 2 or 3 years just hammering 

away at better understanding 

the brand and the global market and 

even to a point where we started developing 

Meinl artists in South Africa. We 

had people coming to us to buy a competing 

cymbal, and I wouldn't question 

them or try and sell them a Meinl, but 

once they had paid for it, I would ask 

them if they would allow me the opportunity 

to show them the same type 

cymbal in the Meinl brand. I remember 

in this case that it was the Sand Ride 

and I would tell them that they need 

to listen to it and every single time the 

customer would ask if they could swop 

out what they had just bought for the 

Meinl cymbal. It became a huge thing. 

The sales team here in Germany 

thought it would be a good thing to 

send Benny Greb to South Africa because 

of what we were doing there. So, 

Benny got booked, and I remember 

driving to the Airport to pick him up. 

I was sweating bullets because I was so 

nervous. They had told him who I was, 

and I knew who he was, so it was just 

crazy. I almost didn't do it because I was 

so stressed, haha. So, I picked him up, 

and he just warmed my heart. It felt like 

we had known each other forever, and 

we spoke about 20 000 things that had 

nothing to do with drumming. We connected 

on a whole other level outside of 

drumming. There were so many people 

at that drum workshop. The big thing 

was that so many people outside of the 

drum industry showed up. What he 

teaches goes further than the boundaries 

of drumming, and you can use those 

things in everyday life. It was a massive 

success, and it massively helped Meinl 

because everyone was asking about his 

cymbals. Benny chose the brand, and 

the brand chose him. 

There is a general misconception 

about endorsing a brand. When you 

join Meinl, it means that you are a part 

of the family. I remember just after this 

that my Meinl profile went on the website 

and that made me really emotional 

because for a South African drummer 

like myself to get listed amongst all 


these drummers that were 1000 times 

better than me was just overwhelming. 

It showed the commitment that Meinl 

had to me as much as I had in the company. 

The whole thing only escalated 

from there, and the relationship just 

carried on growing. I remember in 2013 

I moved from Johannesburg to Cape 

Town and saying to the Meinl team at 

that stage that I wanted to get more involved 

and that I didn't want to only 

be in the retail side because I was only 

assisting the Cape Town market. They 

played a big role in me then joining the 

South African distributor of Meinl. 

I remember being called up to Johannesburg 

for the interview to become 

the Meinl sales rep for South Africa, 

and I thought that now I have made it 

and I could die happy, haha. Being able 

to speak to retail companies at such a 

comprehensive level was super exciting. 

We started to get the ball rolling 

for Meinl and even got other stores that 

had their own cymbal distribution for a 

different brand to start stocking Meinl 

and Meinl Percussion. It blossomed in 

just the right way, and I was so excited 

that Meinl had grown so big. 

I 

then got invited to go to 

Frankfurt Messe. How does 

it get much better than that? 

Flying to Germany to do 

business just made me smile from ear 

to ear. Being back at Meinl Germany I 

got to see everyone again, Mrs and Mr 

Meinl, Norbert, Udo and Alex, which 

was great. Then all of a sudden, there 

comes Benny Greb, and he shouts out 

my name and comes and hugs me. I 

couldn't believe that he even remembered 

me. It made me feel super cool. 

While you are in those meetings, you 

start getting introduced to the different 

distribution sectors for Meinl from all 

over the world. They expand your horizons 

for you. They make you feel mega 

special. I remember in 2014, making a 

very clear decision that everything I did 

from that moment would be working 

towards working for Meinl in Germany 

one day. That was the goal, and I told 

them what my purpose was. 

I was a hungry drummer/salesman 

and not yet a businessman. So between 

2014 and 2018, I became the General 

Manager of the distribution company 

who distributed Meinl and started 

working on the business side. There was 

a lot of switches. I then became the general 

manager for Active. I knew I had 

to become a real businessman and start 

understanding shipping and financing, 

debtors books, creditors books and orders 

etc. 

At that stage, I was like "What?" I am 

just a dude that plays the drums, haha, 

it was deep-end stuff for me. I liked 

maths and wanted to become an engineer, 

but the music pulled me more 

than the maths, so I decided to study 

Sound Engineering. I threw myself into 

the deep end on becoming a businessman 

and started pulling myself away 

from just the dude that plays the drums. 

There are not many musicians who can 

be business people, some of them are 

only musicians, but then you get musicians 

that can cross over to both. I see 

that in you as well, Warren. You have 

an understanding of how to sell yourself 

as a business; you're not just a dude 

that plays the drums. If you look at Mike 

Johnston and Anika Nilles as well, they 

know how to sell themselves as a business. 

There are so many guys that get so 

stuck into being a drummer or being 

a businessman; there is no balance between 

the two. I knew I had to get the 

best of both worlds. I worked tirelessly 

and built my career as a businessman. 

I almost left drumming behind to an 

extent. Even though I was focussing on 

Meinl, there were so many other things. 

We were managing nearly 26 brands at 

that stage. Running a business in that 

aspect of it, especially when the first 

recession hit. It was hard for a 24-yearold, 

so I had to learn on the fly. I remember 

so many times getting on YouTube 

and learning things that I didn't know 

to sharpen my skills as a businessman. 

But the back of my mind was always the 

dream of working for Meinl, which at 

times felt extremely unrealistic. I was 

sitting on the opposite side of the world. 

T 

hen in 2018, I received 

a simple text message 

from Meinl asking a simple 

question: If I still had 

the same dream, and I immediately realized 

what this simple text meant. I 

couldn't believe what was happening. 

My wife knew my dream because I always 

shared it with her. 

That text started the conversation between 

Meinl and us, leading them to ask 

if I would come to Germany and have 

an interview. I couldn't believe what 

was happening because I had worked so 

many years to achieve this one dream, 

And it was right in front of me. I was 

so overwhelmed. I was asked to head 

up the sales team for Meinl sales in the 

UK, and I said YES immediately. All I 

could think of was how I was going to 

compete with Meinl Germany in such 

a hardcore, cutthroat place to do business 

like the UK. I mean so many of the 

world's most famous bands come from 

there so it must be difficult, haha! 

That is where Meinl as a company 

and a family really changed my life, 

Immigrating from South Africa to Germany 

is incredibly tricky. It is the most 

stressful thing I have gone through in 

my life, hands down. Meinl as a company 

assisted us greatly with the entire 

process and went above and beyond to 

make this journey possible. The Meinl 

family helped me with everything, and 

all of that showed me who the company 

was. It is not just about the products 

even though they are fantastic, 

but the heart and family of the company 

is an actual thing. I felt so proud 

to be a part of that officially. It started 

hitting me once everything had settled 

in. Understanding the brand on a 

global scale, and spreading it worldwide 

has just been an incredible journey 

so far. I am now the International 

Sales Manager for Europe, Africa, United 

Kingdom, and Ireland and looking 

forward to my future with this incredible 

company. Dreams do come true! 


Parasite Eve 

 

Bring Me The Horizon 

Transcribed by: Louis R. Malherbe II 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.CO.ZA 

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - PERSONAL USE ONLY 2/3

.CO.ZA 


JY IS DIE STORM 

 

DEWALD WASSERFALL 

 

Transcribed by: Louis R. Malherbe II 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

.CO.ZA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - PERSONAL USE ONLY 

 

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.CO.ZA 


• Drummerkeegz420 • Keegan.Amorim.56 • 

KEEGAN 

Positivity & Perseverance. Living life large in South Africa and Dubai 

AMORIM 

By Louis R. Malherbe & Warren van Wyk 

W 

elcome, man! Well done 

for absolutely crushing 

in Dubai! How long have 

you been there now? 

It has been about eight years. I started 

when I was 21 years old, so yes it is definitely 

around eight years. It has been 

such a blessing. 

How is the scene there? Still, pumping and 

thriving like it usually does? 

Yeah! The reason it works there is that 

there are so many venues and every venue 

will have a band or a DJ. The band will 

sometimes only be a duo or somebody 

playing the guitar. They are super keen 

to put live entertainment everywhere. 

There is so much work there and so 

many situations where you can rotate. 

And they keep all of those venues full?! 

Full bro! The one thing I ask myself is 

if whether people have jobs or not because 

they are always in a club drinking 

beer and dancing every night, hahaha. 

That is the thing there, though. The 

nightlife is just so ridiculous. I think 

it also may have to do with the weather 

because it is always hot and it never 

rains, and you are in the desert. With all 

of the hotels and the weather being so 

good, everyone is continually partying, 

going out, drinking and socialising 

so you can only imagine the nightlife. 

What made you decide to go into the dubai 

thing and how did it happen? 

I was in contact with an agent whose 

name is Moris Fresco. He was a South 

African guy, and he told me that there 

was this lady that was looking for a 

drummer to do a hotel gig in Abu Dhabi. 

I went to meet with her and chat 

about how it works, etc. We had a rehearsal, 

and the next thing I knew, I was 

on a flight to Abu Dhabi. I know that I 

am making it sound so easy, but not everyone 

is going to get that opportunity. 

There are a lot of agencies like el-live 

Productions which is enormous. Google 

them because they are always looking 

for musicians. They will send you an 

audition request which will ask you to 

make videos of playing certain songs, 

and they will see how you do on the 

video and do an assessment. They will 

also have a Skype interview with you 

and then from there if you get that one 

gig, it means that you can get more. Getting 

there is the most challenging part. 

A lot of people message me on social 

media telling me that they would like to 

do this and ask how they can go about 

doing the same thing. What I would 

say to the people that are reading is to 

check out el-live Productions. There are 

also all of these groups on Facebook like 

"Musicians looking for work overseas", 

"Musicians looking for work on cruise 

ships", "Musicians looking for work 

in the UAE, Abu Dhabi and Dubai", 

"Nightlife in Abu Dhabi", "Nightlife in 

Dubai" and the list goes on. There are all 

of these Facebook groups and a whole 

community, and people are regularly 

posting on there. 

Another essential thing is to have 

content. You have to have content. 

Have good videos of yourself playing 

and sorry to say but not a shitty video 

from your phone with bad quality and 

sound. Have good content! Make sure 

that you have a passport because you 

need that to travel. Not everyone thinks 

of these things. It is not just about being 

a drummer. It would help if you were a 

businessman, a hustler and all of those 


ALL PHOTOGRAPHY: PRAVDA STUDIO

" 

Do whatever you 

want to do, Do what 

you love, and life will 

be fulfilling. 

"

Keegan Amorim 

things. They don't teach you that in life 

until you get a little older. Networking 

is also vital, and that goes for any 

industry that you are working within. 

You might send 50 emails, and 49 

people won't reply but the 50th person 

might, and that is one opportunity that 

you have that you didn't have before. 

That was pretty much my story. I could 

of have heard about that small opportunity 

and could have turned it down because 

I didn't feel like driving to some 

dodgy place in Johannesburg to meet a 

lady that I didn't know, but I didn't, and 

the next thing I knew I was on a plane 

to Abu Dhabi. It is just about putting 

yourself out there and making sure 

that you are ready. Get a small presskit 

together. If you have a good phone and 

a good computer you can do it yourself. 

That is pretty much what I did. 

From there, we did the first contract 

at a hotel in Abu Dhabi. That was for 

three months, and from there, we networked. 

Another FNB manager from 

another hotel came to check us out and 

asked us for our contact details, and 

from there, we moved to Dubai. We 

played there for six months, and from 

there another person from a hotel saw 

us. They came to see us from Malaysia 

actually and then we went all the way 

to Malasia and played at The Hilton 

in Zeta Bar. All of these opportunities 

happened on the road, but that can also 

happen with just playing locally. You 

play with one artist, and another artist 

sees you, and you get another gig. 

A lot of the above is my small story 

of how I got there initially. I was working 

over there with South Africans for 

a while, but as things go in bands, you 

want to branch out and do different 

things. I met an American guy by the 

name of Gorge Sotello, and he was putting 

together a nine-piece international 

band, and that is where things changed 

for me. Another thing is that you have 

to have standards that you work for and 

you have to know your worth and all 

of those things. I am all for that, and I 

agree with it 100% guys can be so picky 

about where they play and who they play 

with, but I mean if you are playing a lot, 

you cover your costs and it all works out 

then what is there to complain about. 

For example, I was sharing a room with 

another guy during my first contract. I 

could have complained and have said 

no, but from making those small sacrifices 

in the beginning and dealing 

with that, I was able to get to where I 

am now. I also think it's about picking 

your fights and battles at some point 

and paying your dues. 

Take a board and write down your 

goals and then go after that every 

day and do what you have to do. Message 

people, network, go out and see 

bands, put things together, make videos 

and send them out, see venue owners, 

message hotels, get the FNB managers 

contacts and send them emails. 

The world has become such a fast food 

place where people want things to happen 

immediately. So i can't entirely agree 

when you say that you got lucky because 

you worked hard and were patient. 

Exactly. Even with being back in South 

Africa because of the whole pandemic 

situation, I didn't sit around and think I 

was helpless. I didn't let having to move 

back, being away from my girl and being 

away from my house get me down. 

I decided to use this time and practice 

every day. I sent out my promo to all the 

guys here in South Africa and told them 

to check it out if they were looking for 

a drummer and look, now I have been 

gigging since things have opened up. 

It is not that I think that I am the best 

drummer or that I have an ego, I don't 

have any of those things but if you want 

something in life go for it and work for 

it. As you said, it is not always going to 

work in your favour, but you need perseverance 

and patience, and you have to 

pay your dues. 

You were willing to do that and work 7 days 

a week playing yourself to the bone, but 

you get people who dont want to work for 

it and want it handed to them, and when it 

isn't handed to them, they get offended. 

Yes, and that is another thing that I 

want to say. Every single gig that I have 

gotten in my life has not been because 

of the way that I play the drums. It is 

because of my attitude towards people. 

I know that I am not the best and fasted 

drummer with the best timing and 

I don't have the craziest fills, but I do 

the best that I can do and love it, and 

people enjoy it as well. That goes for any 

industry that you work in, not just music. 

Your mom or your dad doesn't go 

to their job and be a horrible person to 

people and think that they are going to 

get away with it, but musicians feel that 

they can shout at a sound engineer and 

complain and think that it's fine. No, 

you have to be professional, and you 

have to know how to speak to people. 

That is so important. Attitude is everything. 

I know it is so cliche, but it is true. 

100% man! The one thing that I love about 

you is your extreme positivity. It is so electric. 

That is such a big thing as well because 

that positivity feeds off to other people. 

Yeah, you have to cultivate. It takes time. 

It is a habit. I still have my days that I 

don't feel positive, but we are all human. 

It takes small things and small aspects 

to keep positive. One of the things for 

me is keeping active, and that doesn't 

mean just going to the gym. You can be 

outside watering the garden, going for 

a hike or even a walk in the morning or 

Yoga. It is also important to eliminate 

negative things like unfollowing your 

friends that are continually posting 

negative stuff on Social Media. The fact 

that you can walk, talk and breath is incredible 

because some people can't do 

that. You need to wake up every morning 

and be grateful to be alive. 

What are you doing to stay positive during 

the covid time and what happened when 

you found out that you had to come back 

to south africa, etc? 

I actually spoke to some guy that was 

working in the government, and he 

said that they were going to shut down 

the schools the nightclubs, but I didn't 

take it too seriously. I went backstage 

and told the other band members what 


I heard, and they said straight away that they don't think 

that the government would ever do that. I was in the shower 

a few days later, getting ready for the next gig when 

the guitarist banged on my door saying that we were not 

working anymore and that they are going to be shutting 

everything down for two weeks and it just got more and 

more hectic. Anyway, that's a long story short. I have been 

practising every day since the lockdown happened and I 

have been reaching out to everyone that I know. 

I am playing with an artist at the moment by the name 

of Justin Serrao. I have also started a small entertainment 

company. Different venues and organisers will contact me 

to get bands and musicians because of extensive experience. 

I have a whole backlog—we put various corporate 

bands together, including duos and trios. We also do DJs 

with saxophones and violins. The budgets are small now, 

and the venues are small, so we are not making what we 

were, but we are keeping momentum, and we are covering 

our costs. That is pretty much what I am doing now. 

I love your ambitions and the fact that you hustle and keep 

going. 

Yeah, you can go on my Instagram and social media at any 

time, and you will never see me complaining. I just kept 

practising and found a way where I can make money and 

thought of different things that I can do. I can't always rely 

on other people to get gigs for me as a drummer. I have 

to front this thing, and I have to go out and make things 

happen. It is a constant hustle, and that is just life, when 

is it not? I think, as humans, we want to have goals, and 

we want to accomplish them. 

That is amazing man! Do you have any idea when you will be 

going back to dubai? 

It is so strict in Dubai man. There are probably going to be 

ridiculous things to go through to play there. So, for now, 

one-man bands are capitalising there. Even those guys will 

have to have a screen around them, almost like a drum 

screen. They are very strict over there so possibly next year 

I will go back. It has been so cool being back in South Africa 

and connecting with family and friends, so I am not 

only focussing on just getting back to Dubai. I am here 

now, working with my situation and doing what I have to 

do. I will definitely be going back, though. Hopefully, in 

January or February, but I am also not stressed if I don't. 

Lastly, I want to give a shoutout to you guys for having me 

here. It is a great platform. And to everyone, I know that we 

are going through a hard time but keep going and hustle. 

Wake up every day, be thankful to be alive and go for it. Do 

you whatever you want to do. If you want to make furniture, 

then make furniture. If you enjoy gardening, then get in 

the garden. Do what you love, and life will be fulfilling. 


Leeroy 

Sauls 

Family man Hugh Masekela Kids in Action 

My journey began in 

church, that was the 

background. My reference 

would be David 

Klaasen, who is 

my cousin. I always wanted to be on that 

vibe and play all those stages and gigs 

that he was doing. I played in the church 

and also did the club circuit in Cape 

Town, and then I got a call form a bass 

player called Alvin Hendricks. He asked 

me if I would like to come up and play 

a gig with an artist called KB. I jammed 

with her for a while and also played with 


PHOTOGRAPHY: PROVIDED BY LEEROY SAULS

Energy! 

Leeroy showing off 

his stage presence 

with Rubber Duc. 

Bianca Le Grange and Zama Jobe now 

and then. After about a year I went back 

home to Cape Town. I kept contemplating 

whether I should go back to Jozi or 

not but decided I would carry on hanging 

in Cape Town for a while longer. 

February that year my cousin, Theo, 

called me and said that Dozi needed 

a drummer because his then-current 

drummer had a bit of a problem with 

some personal habits. He relapsed into 

these habits when they had a week run 

at Die Boer. They called me and asked if 

I could make the gig. I got to the show 

and had no clue of the tracks, so I had to 

jam by ear that night. From there, Dozi 

told me that I had the gig so once again 

I was moving back to Joburg. All this 

happened around 14 years ago. I played 

with Dozi for about a year and a half 

and then it started to die down. 

I began to move more into the African 

Market playing for artists like Zama 

Jobe and Erik Paliani. I played with 

Zama Jobe for a while and did some recordings 

with her and then Erik asked 

if I would be keen to do something different 

with a new band with Bra Hugh 

(Hugh Masekela). I told him that of 

course, I was keen, haha! The first gig 

that we did with Bra High was like a 

Morning Live thing which was also 

unrehearsed and just a free jam. The 

week after that they called and asked if 

we were ready because we were going 

to Europe and that is where it all started. 

For twelve years of that, I have been 

travelling. I dedicated twelve years of 

my life to Hugh Masekela. I have six full 

passports; it is insane. While travelling, 

I met loads of my favourite drummers 

like Dave Weckl, Stewart Copeland, etc. 


Leeroy Sauls

The only drummer that I, unfortunately, 

didn't get to meet but saw him play 

was Vinnie Colaiuta. It was such an incredible 

journey. 

Today, I have had to learn how to diversify 

the way I look at life. I do still 

gig and all of that, but I have moved 

more into the digital thing playing 

with DJ's. Hopefully, that is the future 

now. I have seen loads of guys doing 

it, but I am thinking instead of doing 

the whole percussion vibe to rather do 

the digital thing. It is a lot easier to be 

able to get to these gigs and have two 

channels out and have a bunch of different 

sounds that you can use. There 

are no headaches; people want things 

to be easy nowadays. Some people 

look down on this sort of thing, but 

why not diversify? At the end of the 

day, I am a dad, and I have bills to pay. 

T 

Hugh and others. If we are referring to 

hinking back on my journey 

so far, I have learned so 

many vital lessons from Bra 

the drumming and the musical side of 

things, then it was learning how to play 

with dynamics. The first few shows that 

I played I got excited and would want to 

lay into it and play loud, and Bra Hugh 

would tell me straight that they weren't 

playing along to my bass drum and the 

bass drum wasn't a feature in the gig 

and that I must to listen to what was 

happening. He wouldn't be shy to let 

you know how it is and how it should 

be. He would shout at you. So, yes, playing 

dynamically. 

The places we played were incredible. 

We played places like the Carnegie Hall 

in New York, The Sydney Opera House, 

and we also had a week run in Japan at 

the Blue Note. It was just phenomenal. 

The top artists on these gigs would have 

their specific requirements and their 

tech riders, so with a lot of those gigs, 

we also got those type of treatments. So 

we got to chose which kits we wanted. 

The Yamaha Maple was always my preference. 

At the sound checks, you would 

have all these kits set up, and when it 

was your time to play, they would roll 

the side. I love writing, and I was hoping 

to get a studio going where I could for something. 

their lives because they have a passion 

do Jingles and that type of stuff, and I Kids in Action is not something I am 

also wanted to teach. Bra Hugh was never 

even a sickly person, and he always to do it to get a government tender so I 

doing to benefit myself, and I don't want 

had more energy than you, so I never 

saw it coming. I was in Cape Town and only invest 2 thousand to the kids. 

can buy myself a 5 billion rand house 

at the time, and he just went down so The main thing is for me to give back 

fast. Our gigs did stop for a while, but whatever I can. In these times, I have 

because he looked after us financially, 

we didn't have that stress of having by giving some of my gear and sticks 

also just been giving as much as I can 

to have a plan B. It taught me that in away when I am in Cape Town. I want 

life, you have to have something else as to make a difference in my small world. 

a plan B. The sad thing is growing up Considering everything that has recently 

happened in the world, I am bless- 

as a musician; the top guys wouldn't 

tell you about these downsides. I wish ed. When I started in music, I invested 

that somebody would have been hon- 

in property. I had to sell (Continues on page 50) 

out your gear. 

est with me that time and told me that 

People sometimes worry about meeting 

their heroes, because you know, that even though I was good at it did 

even though this was my passion and 

people always say "never meet your heroes, 

it might ruin them for you" this on the side. I find that in our industry 

that I should still get something else 

wasn't my experience luckily. Most of people don't talk about these things. 

the times we would stay in the same hotels 

as these guys. Bra Hugh was mostly 

on the Jazz bills. The one time we 

my project 'Kids in Action'. 

O 

h yes! One of my passions is 

were staying in the same hotel as Steve 

I don't want to go down the 

Smith. Sometimes you get so excited 

that you don't think about how the nothing because a lot of people haven't 

whole victim road of growing up with 

person may be feeling. Maybe you have grown up with a lot, but they made the 

had 1 or 2 beers, and you believe that best out of it. It (Kids in Action) started 

with going back to where I grew up 

the person coming up to you may want 

to stalk you, haha. I also met one of my and to be able to give back. A lot of my 

good mates Oscar Seaton who played peers have passed away because of being 

involved with gangs and those type 

for Lionel Richie and George Benson. 

We shared the bills with a lot of these of things, so music saved me because 

guys. I met Dave Weckl while he was when you grow up in those kind of environments, 

you are prone to go down 

playing with Mike Stern and Steward 

Copeland at one of the gigs we played. those paths. It's where you find comfort 

M 

oving on to 

more serious 

things. 

It was a massive shock 

when Bra Hugh passed 

away because that was 

our main gig. People 

always tell you that 

you should have a 

backup plan and get 

something else going 

and you should do 

your own things on 

"If you want to pursue 

music as a fulltime 

career, make 

sure to have something 

to fall back on 

first of all and then 

enjoy the journey and 

be a nice guy" 

and brotherly vibes. 

So the idea was to 

give back and to significantly 

change the 

perspective of the 

young kids and teach 

them that if they have 

talent, then they have 

something to live for 

and then give them the 

motivation and guidance 

that they need. 

We want to show them 

that they can change 


HAVING 

PATIENCE 

IS A VIRUTE 

By Warren van Wyk 


ALL PHOTOGRAPHY: LOUIS R. MALHERBE II

Patience is a virtue 

Things have most certainly changed 

since I was a kid living with my parents. 

We got taught that things take 

time and that we need to wait and have 

the patience for the things we want and 

feel that we need. Today, things have 

changed quite a bit. First of all, look 

at the debt rate. The debt rate is enormous, 

and you may ask yourself, why 

is that so or even important? It is because 

we are in a time where we don't 

want to wait or be patient for the things 

we want. We want them now, and if we 

can't have them NOW, then we are not 

happy. What happened to saving for a 

piece of gear, a nice car, new clothes, 

that new computer, etc.? Well, I can 

tell you what happened. Banks happened. 

They saw the gap in the market 

and took it. They saw how impatient 

and how in need people are, and they 

capitalised big time. You want that car, 

but you feel you need it right now, well 

take a loan for it and get it immediately. 

You want that shiny new cellphone, call 

MTN and take out a contract. The shiny 

new watch that you have always wanted 

is on sale for seven days, but you don't 

have the cash on hand. Phone the bank 

and get a loan. I think you get my point. 

We live in a fast-moving world! You may 

be asking why on earth I am talking all 

this financial stuff and may be wonder- 

ing how does this apply to drumming. 

Good question! Let's get into it. 

It seems today that the above applies to 

some people's mentality when it comes 

to getting there name out there. They 

want it to happen immediately, and if it 

doesn't, they get upset about it or blame 

everyone else. I can honestly say that it 

took me 15 years to finally get in with 

the musicians that I always dreamt of 

being involved with. It took hundreds 

upon hundreds of smaller gigs, and it 

took dedication, consistency, and so 

much patience. Luckily I was brought 

up knowing that things take time and 

that you have to pour in loads and loads 

of hard work before anything concrete 

happens. What I have seen, especially 

since running SA Drummer is a lack 

of patience, especially with younger 

drummers. We have been running this 

platform for three years now, and there 

has been more than one case where a 

drummer will follow our page for the 

first time after almost three years. 

When they don't get a mention in 

the first week of following us, they get 

offended. They proceed to run us to 

the ground saying that we don't support 

younger drummers or the "working-class". 

It concerns me how quickly 

(once again) these drummers want 

things to go their way. They haven't 

even put in the effort to read the magazines 

and see the young up and coming 

drummers that have gotten featured. 

They haven't enjoyed the content or followed 

us long enough to see what we 

do. They immediately see something 

that they want or feel entitled to and 

jump headfirst. When this doesn't pan 

out, everyone else seems to be at fault. 

Is that not unreasonable? 

I 

can't even imagine what would 

happen to my career if I lost my 

temper and threw a tantrum because 

an artist I wanted to work with 

didn't use me right away. I would never 

dare do that! That would be one of the 

quickest ways to destroy any chance 

of getting in there at all. That takes me 

back to how I waited almost 15 years to 

meet the right people that made the career 

I have today possible. When I first 

met these people, did I get a call from 

them straight away? No, of course, I 

didn't. After waiting 15 years to meet the 

right people, I was back to waiting before 

they even called. Did I phone them 

and be on their case to use me? No! That 

would be the first mistake. Now imagine 

I did that and then after the 3rd call 

with no success, I lost my temper and 

told them how useless they were! If I 

had to do something crazy like that, 

I would have immediately blown my 

chances for good! 

What did I do instead? I met the right 

people, proved myself when I had the 

opportunity, and I left it right there. 

They now knew who I was, so if they 

wanted to use me in the future, then 

they would. Fast forward six years later 

and guess what, I am still waiting and 

hoping for calls from some important 

people that I know and that I have 

worked with. Waiting is part of the process. 

They know who I am so when they 

are ready, and they want to use me on 

drums, it will happen at the right time. 

If you work hard and prove yourself and 

you add some patience into the mix, you 

will be surprised at how all of a sudden, 

the ball starts to roll! Please don't kill it 

with entitlement or impatience before 

you even get going! 

When we get these harsh reactions 

from the impatient drummers we mentioned 

above, what do you think happens? 

We immediately become apprehensive 

about working with them. There 

are drummers out there who want to 

be featured and have been following us 

since the beginning. They have been so 

patient and respectful. Those are the 

people we love and want to support. By 

being patient and staying in touch, it 

also allows us to follow their growth 

and keep tabs on what they are doing. 

With that patience, it is almost a guarantee 

that at the right time they will 

get a message from us asking them to 

work with us. It happens and has happened. 

The guys that unfollowed us af- 


ter a week of not getting what they want 

are now out of our sight for good. They 

have excluded themselves from us because 

it didn't go the way they wanted. 

Can you see where this is going? Does 

it make some sense? 

A 

nother thing to point out is that 

sometimes we are in such a rush 

to get to the top that we don't 

even enjoy the process of getting there. 

That is a sad realisation. I can sometimes 

only smile to see where I was six 

years ago and realise how much fun the 

process has been. And I know six years 

from now I will be looking back again 

and realise that the process is pretty exciting. 

It is gratifying to see how far you 

have come and how you had to work 

your way through so many different 

levels to get to this point. Without the 

struggle, how would we ever appreciate 

the reward? I feel we need to adjust our 

mindsets and instead enjoy the journey 

rather than getting upset or impatient 

about it. 

If you know of a wise man by the 

name of Gary Vaynerchuck, then you 

already know how dead set he is on having 

patience and consistency. He mentioned 

something so powerful in one of 

his podcasts. He said that if he had to 

lose everything tomorrow and had to 

start from the bottom, it would make 

him so excited. It's because he enjoys 

what he does and loves the journey of 

building his brand from the bottom up. 

Is that not powerful? 

I am not perfect, and I still get impatient 

when things don't happen as 

quickly as I thought they would. Still, I 

need to continually remind myself that 

everything takes time and that I need 

to be patient. If what I want and what 

I am working for is the right thing for 

me, it will happen. There is no point 

in shouting at someone or something 

when they don't give you the call immediately. 

Be patient, work on the relationship. 

If it takes longer than you 

thought, don't worry because it will be 

much more exciting after the wait when 

the opportunity finally presents itself. 

A 

nother experience I had was 

when I first got interviewed in 

a previous South Africa drum 

magazine called SA Drums and Percussion. 

I was young and keen to be featured 

in it. I knew the owners (Continues on page 50) 


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.CO.ZA 


“I’m thrilled to be back in 

the space of just playing 

sessions. Doing some other 

things I like to do even 

outside of Gospel.” 

SABU 

SATSHA 

SHARES 

By Louis R. Malherbe 

Over two years ago, during the early 

days of SA DRUMMER, we had an 

interview with Sabu. We just knew 

back then already that he was absolutely 

one of those energies that 

we had to have in the magazine. 

(Continues on the next page) 

ALL PHOTOGRAPHY: LOUIS R. MALHERBE II November 2020 | SA DRUMMER | 39

SABU SATSHA 

S 

Sabu Satsha is one of the most relevant 

drummers in South Africa. Boasting an 

incredible track record of artists he has 

played for, as well as his knowledge and 

understanding of both the technical 

and business aspects of being a modern 

and active musician. 

We wanted to catch up with him 

again and pick his brain about experiences 

during this lockdown period as 

well as how his plans have matured and 

changed since the last time we spoke. 

He felt strongly about investing 

himself in various avenues and styles 

of music during our last interview and 

has strived towards that diversity with 

great success. He has been pursuing a 

mainstream session career in the drum 

scene with passion. It is now 5 years 

down the line after parting ways with 

Joyous Celebration, arguably one of the 

main reasons he was catapulted in the 

limelight as a South African drumming 

gem. 

Sabu is a force to be reckoned with 

within the Gospel scene, primarily 

playing for the likes of Ntokozo Mbambo. 

Recently he has been working with 

and making even more of a name for 

himself with artists such as Mam' Sibongile 

Khumalo in the Jazz Scene. Sometimes 

playing shows where the energy is 

considerably more laid back compared 

to the gospel vibes usually associated 


Hanging Out 

Sabu tracking some 

songs at the SA 

DRUMMER studio 

before his hangout . 


SABU SATSHA 

with his playing. His appreciation for 

the style showing when he proceeds to 

explain it to me. Sabu: “I wouldn’t say 

it’s sombre, but it’s very, hush everyone, 

quiet and listen, very atmospheric music, 

and it is just very cool.”. He also performs 

with Brenda Mtambo and Jaziel 

Brothers in the Afro-Soul and Afro-Pop 

scenes respectively. Sabu: “I’m thrilled 

to be back in the space of just playing 

sessions. Doing some other things I like 

to do even outside of Gospel.” 

Being a musician of the highest calibre, 

he has also found himself in the 

driver seat of many productions and 

other shows. He was the Musical Director 

for all eight of the local artists 

performing at the Spiritual Awakening 

Concert 2019. Boasting an understanding 

of the technical and musical 

needs of all these various musicians, 

all whilst being the in-house drummer 

for all eight artists as well. If there was 

ever a drummer to look up to and be 

inspired by, Sabu Satsha is him. Carving 

a niche for himself in the industry 

through talent and pure dedication to 

his craft ensures that he will live on forever 

as one of the South African greats, 

locally and internationally. 

Interestingly enough, Sabu finds 

himself travelling outside of the country 

even more now than he used to 

when he was still working with Joyous 

Celebration. Sabu: “because Joyous was 

such a huge production, forty to fifty, 

the costs just didn’t make it viable 

to take it out of the country as often 

as we would've liked.” With the artists 

he works with now, it has become way 

more viable to take the projects internationally. 

He is now regularly travelling 

to places like the UK for the London Jazz 

Festival or to Nigeria to perform at the 

Experience Gospel Concert, one of the 

biggest Gospel festivals in the world. 

Sabu also raves about the experiences 

he has when performing in Germany, 

especially from an MD point of view, 

praising the German’s technical precision 

when providing for Tech Riders. 

Sabu: “It’s just a breath of fresh air every 

single time.” 

O 

nline shows and pre-recorded 

“live” concerts on the internet 

have become the new norm as 

we battle through this strange time. 

Sabu found himself doing more than 

his fair share of these new medium 

shows. Reminiscing about all the Facebook 

Live, Urban Sessions and new Live 

TV Channels he has done gigs on. He 

openly laughs, admitting that he can 

not wait for things to return to some 

semblance of normalcy. Sabu: “I think 

I miss drawing the energy from the 

crowd, there is just something about 

having a crowd in front of you.” 

It seemed that a lot of artists started 

moving heavily towards recording 

singles instead of full albums during 

the lockdown. Live shows as we know 

are seemingly out the window for the 

foreseeable future. Sabu has been right 

there ready to be the person who lays 

down the drum tracks to all of these 

newly recorded singles. 

“germany... It’s just a 

breath of fresh air every 

single time.” 

As it turns out, Sabu had just finished 

building his brand new studio at 

his home, a project he has been wanting 

to do for close on two years. This newly 

built studio is one of the main reasons 

he was able to continue working regardless 

of our situation at the moment. A 

steep learning curve wasn’t enough to 

keep him away from the challenge, and 

he attacked it head-on with the determination 

he gives to everything he does 

professionally. Sabu: “80% of the studio 

work I have been doing is the stuff that 

has been sent to me, and I have done at 

home in my new studio.” 

The studio was something he has 

been researching for several years. 

Whether it was via Youtube or just by 

asking questions every single time he 

was at someone else’s studio made it 

possible for him to take on this project. 

Again being a testament to Sabu’s 

business sense and sustainable mindset 

when it comes to being a working 

musician. Asking the right questions, 

making the necessary connections with 

people and asking for advice has resulted 

in continued working when a lot of 

other artists have been struggling like 

never before. Sabu: “I had people on video 

calls for like three weeks, helping me 

with putting it all together, hahaha.” 

Even though he put in all this time 

and effort to make the best of lockdown, 

Sabu also understood the importance 

of keeping fit mentally during this incredibly 

mentally taxing period. He actually 

found himself resting more and 

reading and just stimulating his brain 

in a way that he hadn’t found time for 

in many years. 

Understanding that self-improvement 

with regards to the mind, whether 

for mental gain or just relaxation is 

as important as everything else that 

was always occupying 100% of the day. 

Sabu: “It’s given me time to really mess 

around with my craft but also to really 

spend time at home, which is amazing.” 

apart from the fact that he still had 

certain gigs, and studio work covering 

the essentials in life, Sabu preaches 

living outside of debt as a musician, 

or as anyone actually. Especially as an 

artist with an income that is susceptible 

to situations like the one we are 

in now. You should always live below 

your means and be smart with your 

spending Sabu: “I’m so at peace at the 

moment. Why should I buy a new car 

because I can afford one? Mine is old… 

but it’s good…It gets me from A to B. It 

gets me to work, and that’s the important 

part. Don’t live a R4 life if you are 

only earning R5.” 

H 

aving a strong social media 

presence is definitely something 

to work on if you want to 

stay relevant in people’s minds. Look- 



SABU SATSHA 

Brand Involvement 

Sabu is proudly endorsed 

by DW, 

Aquarian Heads, 

Vater and Sabian. 


“I’m so at peace at the moment. 

Why should I buy a 

new car because I can afford 

one? Mine is old…but 

it’s good…It gets me from 

A to B. It gets me to work, 

and that’s the important 

part. Don’t live a R4 life if 

you are only earning R5.” 


SABU SATSHA 

ing at Sabu’s, you will see that currently 

it has all but ceased movement. Being 

the business and sustainability focussed 

individual that he is Sabu has 

been working on a complete overhaul 

and rebrand of his entire image online 

since early this year. He has picked the 

perfect time to take this hiatus from 

social media. Right now, when there is 

very little happening in the world that 

people have wanted to share. So the instant 

life returns back to normal Sabu 

will strike with a Social presence that 

will be stronger than before the lockdown 

started. How to always be thinking 

about the future is one of the most 

valuable lessons young musicians 

should be taking away from Sabu today. 

Sabu: “possibly in the near future, 

you will probably see everything come 

down, and then the new will go up.” 

Drummers are entertainers, and 

your social media presence should be 

just that, the entertainment that your 

following seeks, in whatever way you 

choose to deliver it. Your following 

wants to see your artist persona online. 

Sabu understands this very well. His focus 

for his social media platforms going 

forward is to have a high standard of 

quality that will always be maintained. 

Ensuring that people come to expect 

great content from him and keep coming 

for more. Sabu: “Social media is a 

reflection of what you want people to 

see you as.” 

A 

s with the studio and his social 

media presence, Sabu has been 

putting in a lot of effort and time 

into figuring out a sound for himself 

with regards to his future projects of 

putting out his own work and albums. 

He wants to ensure that he has a sound 

that is uniquely him. People should be 

able to immediately connect the music 

to him when they hear it, further solidifying 

that almighty presence he has in 


the scene. Focussing more on this type 

of research and personal growth has 

also meant that he has pulled back considerably 

from gigging. Especially compared 

to how much he was on stage at 

the onset of his career. Focussing more 

on playing for the artists he wants to 

instead of playing for every single gig 

that pops up. Sabu: “I always tell guys, 

get married, hahaha. Priorities change. 

But on top of that, I also enjoy studio 

work more, which allows me to be home 

more as well.” 

Sabu and SA DRUMMER have had 

long discussions about the need for 

complete and freely available resources 

for young musicians. A need for resources 

that cover topics from attitude, 

business sense and how to work with 

your money. All of these being things 

that result in the downfall of a lot of 

young artists out there. Few people out 

there are sharing the relevant information. 

And no one seems to be willing to 

take the time to get these resources together 

and in place for our youth. Sabu 

feels very strongly about making a difference 

by engaging with and starting 

projects that will achieve these goals. 

Sabu: “We need to go back to basics, 

talk about the little things that make us 

people, even before musicians.” 

Sabu and SA DRUMMER are currently 

working on resources for young 

drummers to benefit from and get them 

ready for the real world. Resources that 

will teach them about the mistakes that 

we have made and they don’t have to. 

People will always make their own mistakes 

and learn from them. The least we 

can do is show them the mistakes that 

they don’t need to make themselves. 


DERRICK BADENHORST 

S 

o Covid-19 has hit the world hard, yet 

at the coastal town, Port Elizabeth, 

they took those “hits” and changed it 

into a positive. Local drummer and educator, 

Derrick Badenhorst (Owner of 

DDrums Drumming Academy) didn’t 

let the grass grow under his feet. Since 

the 31st March 2020, DDrums Drumming 

Academy started with their online 

classes. Derrick states that he did 

lose a lot of face to face students as a 

result of the pandemic, but remains 

optimistic about the local music scene 

and his drumming academy. He currently 

teaches 52 students every week. 

As far as the live bands are concerned, 

Port Elizabeth has an ever-growing 

bands scene. With names such as Beddlam, 

Shard, Axyl, The Mystery, Straytalk 

and Monolith performing in and 

around the local music scene. Venues 

like Music Kitchen have gone out of their 

way to promote and accommodate live 

bands to have a platform to perform at. 

This pandemic has thrown all the musicians 

a curveball and drummers in 

specific had to think outside the box. 

Derrick says he is looking forward to 

two of his up and coming concerts with 

the majority of his students, where he 

will showcase his students performing 

live. The one takes place on the 14th 

November at The Music Kitchen and 

on the 12th December at Open Sky. (For 

tickets to both these drumming concerts 

you can contact at 0839469040). 


PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF: DERRICK BADENHORST

“Local drummer and 

educator, Derrick 

Badenhorst (Owner of 

DDrums Drumming Academy) 

didn’t let the grass grow 

under his feet.” 


~> LEEROY SAULS 

(Continuation from page 31) the one in Cape Town, 

but I still have one in Joburg. That helps 

me to stay afloat because there was a 

time when Hugh passed away that it 

was rough! At the moment, I am just 

trying to keep my current bond going. 

S 

ome words of advice I'd like 

to give, I share with the hope 

that someone learns from it. 

I feel that sometimes when you speak 

to people, they just want to knock their 

own heads, to be honest with you. I 

think that they wish to hear your opinion 

and then move on from that. With 

that said, If you want to pursue music 

as a fulltime career, make sure to have 

something to fall back on first of all and 

then enjoy the journey and be a nice 

guy. That is important. Not everyone is 

going to like you, first of all, some of us 

have our issues and reasons why we say 

no to things, but it doesn't mean that 

we have to be an ugly person. So, yes, 

be a lekker person, have something to 

fall back on, practice, and I think most 

importantly, get your education. There 

are ways where you can become huge 

complimented me on my playing and 

said that it was time to have that interview 

with me for the next issue! I was 

over the moon and so excited that my 

patience paid off. 

Now picture a different scenario. 

Imagine I was always on their case. Continually 

pushing and then getting angry 

because I wasn't featured right when 

I wanted to be. Do you think I would 

have ever gotten featured or would they 

have not even considered me because of 

my bad attitude? I believe you know the 

answer to that one! 

In conclusion, patience is everything. 

If you are seeking an opportuniquickly 

by winning a competition, but 

then I feel that you have missed out on 

walking the journey. There is no substitute 

for experience at the end of the day. 

This Mcdonald's mentality of immediately 

getting something is problematic. 

It is like that with teaching students as 

well. They want you to teach them. They 

want you to show them all the fundamentals 

and teach them dynamics, but 

then they rush to the part of you showing 

them everything that you can do and 

want you to show them all the chops. 

~> PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE 

(Continuation from page 35) very well, but I was also 

aware that that wasn't an immediate 

guarantee that I was going to get featured. 

What did I do? I let them know 

that I would be honoured to have a feature, 

and I left it right there. Next thing, 

I was playing a show at the college where 

I was studying. I knew that the owner of 

the magazine was going to be there so 

it was the perfect time to prove myself 

and show him why he should feature 

me in the first place. I played the show, 

and when I was leaving, I happened to 

walk past the owner. He stopped me, 

ty, put the word out there to the relevant 

people and be patient! If it doesn't 

happen straight away, then it probably 

isn't the right time. If you want a feature 

with SA Drummer, remember that 

we are a two-person team and we probably 

won't get back to you immediately. 

If you get angry and throw attitude at 

us, we are merely going to have a bad 

taste in our mouths. That goes for whoever 

or whatever company you are pursuing. 

Be patient, be consistent, prove 

your worth and the opportunities WILL 

present themselves. The excitement 

you will feel after the wait, and hard 

work will be priceless. I promise!

Issue 15 - Sabu Satsha - November 2020

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