One of the few bright spots during the pandemic has been the quick rise of Nandi Bushnell. Like most people, I had no idea who she was until sometime in 2020. And if you still don’t know who she is, you really should.
She’s a kid drummer. She’s a sweetheart. She’s a bad ass. And last week, against all odds, she took the stage with Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters at the LA Forum.
Did I mention she’s only 11? When I was 11 I was trying to jump over lizards on my bike with baseball cards in the spokes.
In case you don’t know about Nandi Bushnell yet, let me give you just a quick overview, which you can get more of from her YouTube page.
Age 6, her first video, jamming with her dad. When I was 6, jamming meant getting my pb&j sandwich stuck to the side of my face.
Age 9, drumming along to Bill Withers, “Use Me.” She is the personification of cool in this video. When I was 9? I pooped my pants at church and my dad had to take me home.
Age 10, she challenges Dave Grohl to a drum off, playing to “Everlong.” Check out the screams. The screams are the best.
Days later, Dave Grohl responds, and they have their EPIC drum battle.
A couple of weeks later, it’s round 2 and he writes a song for her.
And age 11, on stage with Dave and the Foo Fighters at the Forum, in front of thousands of fans.
Once again, me at 11? Lizards and my bike.