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Local Music Mondays is a weekly segment produced by WUKY's DeBraun Thomas. Check here for archived episodes, extended interviews, and extras.

Local Music Monday: Drummer Chad Gravitt

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This week for Local Music Monday WUKY's DeBraun Thomas spends a few minutes with drummer/percussionist Chad Gravitt.

Chad Gravitt is a drummer and Lexington native who has been part of the local music scene for over two decades. Playing the drums is something that has always been a passion of his. Gravitt says it all started when he was still in diapers.

“I just banged on everything, my grandmother, my mom, would put pots and pans out and I would non- stop play, I mean, they’ve got photos of me as this little kid just banging on everything, I tore up furniture, that’s when I started, my mom was adopted and her brother was a drummer here in town, so as soon as I sat behind that kit I was like ‘wow,’ I was a really little kid, I just knew.”

During the 90’s Gravitt met Jerrod Figgs and Wendell Rodgers, the three would go on to form the band Groovezilla. The band had regional and international success including having music played on MTV. Gravitt says during the life of the band he learned a lot about the business.

“We signed with a record label out of Amsterdam and it blew up, our first single blew up internationally and the original season, they played like 5 or 6 of our songs on Road Rules that first season, there was a lot of success, it was a great time, then we were introduced to how evil the music business can be and that was terrible, you know, but we kept going.”

In addition to being a sought after drummer for bands, he also finds plenty of work as a session musician. Having played with groups playing everything from Rockabilly to Reggae, Gravitt says his approach to every session he does is the same.

“I take either one very seriously, but if somebody’s paying me to do it and this is their project, their blood, sweat and tears, I wanna go in and make it serious, I wanna make it feel, the key with the studio for me is the click track, it can get really stale if you can’t play with a click in the studio, you can’t play in the studio, and I take their song, I listen to it, I try to make the feels make sense, everything else, the fills, but live I can just kinda open up, but I love both, man I really love recording.”

Chad Gravitt performs with Dublove, Flouraburn and the Mic Larry Band. More information about Gravitt and his projects can be found on facebook.

DeBraun Thomas fell in love with radio at a young age but only had interest in working in radio after learning Funk musician Sly Stone got his start in radio. A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Thomas moved to Lexington in 2009 to attend the University of Kentucky and pursue a career in radio. Thomas joined WRFL in 2009 and through the UK school of Journalism, Thomas had 2 features air on WUKY. In October of 2012, Thomas began interning at WUKY and produced the Unghosting of Medgar Evers. In August of 2013 Thomas became a staff member at WUKY and since that time, Thomas regularly produces the weekly segment Local Music Mondays which highlights local musicians in Lexington. Thomas hosts the Crunkadelic Funk Show which airs Saturday nights at 9pm and also produced a documentary on the 50th anniversary of the March on Frankfort. In addition to producing and hosting a radio show, Thomas also explores his other passion as a musician in Lexington.
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