Go with Elmo Lovano

Episode 115: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

Long before he was one of the biggest stars on the planet, Dwayne was a kid in the backseat of his dad's car, singing along to country and soul, and a Polynesian boy whose family never let anyone sit out a song. That love of music never left him. In this conversation, he leads with the warmth, humility and gratitude that make him who he is, and he speaks with deep pride about his family, his culture and the artists carrying Polynesian music forward.

Dwayne opens up about his new album Moana: Voices Across the Ocean, a project he and his wife Lauren Hashian dreamed up 10 years ago that gives 25 Polynesian artists a global stage. He tells the emotional story behind his song "Your Dad," written for his three daughters with Iam Tongi. He shares life lessons from his mom, Ata, and talks about how he leads his teams, his first time in a recording booth with Lin-Manuel Miranda for "You're Welcome," and the time he tried to become a country singer in Nashville at 15.

The album brings together some of the most exciting voices in Pacific music, including Dinah Jane, Stan Walker, Iam Tongi, Common Kings and Josh Tatofi, with production and songwriting from heavy hitters like Mike Zombie, Poo Bear, The Audibles, TrapMoneyBenny and Eric Zayne. Dwayne breaks down how it all came together, from the very first song that set the tone to the six-island anthem "TĀTOU" that closes the record.

Elmo Lovano and Dwayne have a great energy together from the very first minute. They laugh a lot, reflect on the mothers who shaped them, bond over their musical passions, and share what they've learned about leadership, gratitude and lifting others up. Elmo, a drummer who spent 15 years on the road and founded Jammcard to shine a light on the musicians behind the stars, brings a musician-to-musician perspective that lets Dwayne go deeper than ever on the music that made him.

Go With Elmo Lovano is the #1 music professional podcast, featuring deep, honest conversations with the legends, artists, musicians, producers, songwriters, and industry leaders shaping music today about how they got where they are and how they keep pushing forward.

Huge thanks to our friends at DistroKid! DistroKid is the easiest and fastest way to get your music on over 150 platforms worldwide! Go to https://distrokid.com/vip/elmo to get 20% off your first year!

Big thanks to our friends Moises for supporting the show! If you need stems, they’re the best in the game. Check them out! https://moises.ai/

Elmo Lovano drinks Intelligentsia coffee because he’s an Iced Angeleno. https://www.intelligentsia.com

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Episode 114: Cindy Blackman Santana

Cindy Blackman Santana has had a mind-blowing life journey. Today, she's the drummer and wife of Carlos Santana. Before that, she rode the rocketship of Lenny Kravitz for all the most iconic years. I remember when I first saw Cindy in the "Are You Gonna Go My Way" video and was captivated immediately by her groove, presence, and energy behind the kit. Cindy is deeply dedicated to the drums, and absolutely in love with jazz.

What I love about Cindy's story is that she's lived two musical lives most drummers only dream about. She's a serious jazz bandleader with a catalog going back to the late 1980s, and she's a world-class rock drummer who's played the biggest stages on the planet. She never picked a lane. She brought jazz freedom and fire into rock stadiums and has always blown everyone away.

We go deep on her hero Tony Williams and what his genius unlocked for her. We talk about her amazing relationship with Art Blakey, who she calls a father figure, and what it meant to learn from the masters in person on the streets and in the clubs of New York City. She tells the story of her friendship with Dennis Chambers, the connection that eventually led her to Carlos. We get into her drumming passion, her practice fire, her ferociousness on the kit, and the philosophies that makes her playing so alive.

Cindy has shared the stage and the studio with absolute legends like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Marcus Miller, and so many more, and she's led her own incredible projects along the way. From her Tony Williams tribute album Another Lifetime, to the supergroup Spectrum Road with Jack Bruce and Vernon Reid, to stepping out front as a singer and songwriter on Give the Drummer Some, she's always pushed forward. She studied at Berklee, learned from the lineage of Max Roach and Elvin Jones, and built a career on pure dedication to the instrument.

And then there's the love story. They told her and Carlos that a married couple can't play together in the same band, that it wouldn't work. They proved that it absolutely can. Cindy is the rhythmic heartbeat of the Santana band and she holds Carlos's heart, and hearing her talk about their musical and spiritual partnership is something special.

This is a conversation about drumming, about jazz and rock, about staying true to your art for decades, about being a trailblazer, and about spirituality and passion. Cindy is amazing. I left this conversation inspired, and I hope you feel the same.

Please enjoy my conversation with the great Cindy Blackman Santana.

Go With Elmo Lovano is the #1 music professional podcast, featuring deep, honest conversations with the legends, artists, musicians, producers, songwriters, and industry leaders shaping music today about how they got where they are and how they keep pushing forward.

Huge thanks to our friends at DistroKid! DistroKid is the easiest and fastest way to get your music on over 150 platforms worldwide! Go to https://distrokid.com/vip/elmo to get 20% off your first year!

Elmo Lovano drinks Intelligentsia coffee because he’s an Iced Angeleno. https://www.intelligentsia.com

Become a Patreon Member to stay in the loop as we post Patreon-only exclusive content, ad free episodes, and discussions about music and music careers. https://www.patreon.com/gowithelmo

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Episode 113: Morgan Freeman is one of the greatest actors and narrators of our time. He is also an incredibly joyful, thoughtful and wonderful human being. Morgan joins us for a rare long-form conversation about his extraordinary life, his unmistakable voice, the art of narration, The Shawshank Redemption, playing God in Bruce Almighty and the music that helped shape America: the blues.

Morgan is joined by Eric Meier, his business partner and an executive producer and co-producer of their latest project, Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience. This ambitious album and live production brings together authentic Mississippi Delta blues, symphony orchestra, cinematic storytelling and Morgan’s narration. Eric is also Morgan’s fellow co-owner of the legendary Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Together, they discuss their friendship, their creative partnership, the future of the blues and their mission to preserve this essential American music while carrying it into places it has never gone before. Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience features an extraordinary collection of artists, including Taj Mahal, Keb’ Mo’ and the Chineke! Orchestra.

We also dive into Morgan's approach to narration. Does he change the script? How does rhythm affect the meaning of a line? Is narrating different from acting, or are they ultimately the same craft?

Perhaps our favorite part of this conversation is Morgan’s humility, humor and the laughs we share. We hope you enjoy our conversation with our new friends, Morgan Freeman and Eric Meier!

Huge thanks to our friends at DistroKid! DistroKid is the easiest and fastest way to get your music on over 150 platforms worldwide! Go to https://distrokid.com/vip/elmo to get 20% off your first year!

Elmo Lovano drinks Intelligentsia coffee because he’s an Iced Angeleno. https://www.intelligentsia.com

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Episode 112: Stanley Clarke is one of the greatest and most influential bassists of all time, both on acoustic and electric bass. His long time collaboration with Chick Corea and Return To Forever changed music. His solo albums and the success from it had him as the first bass player to ever take front and center stage. He's a multi GRAMMY winning artist, and one of the greatest living master teachers, as well as being an incredibly sweet and loving human. Stanley is one of a kind. This is the longest and deepest Stanley Clarke interview on the internet, and we're so happy that Stanley chose us for this.

Coming up in Philadelphia, how he found the bass, moved to NY and starting gigging with Horace Silver, Art Blakey, Joe Henderson, Stan Getz, and Chick Corea. We go DEEP on drummers. His work with Tony Williams, Lenny White, Steve Gadd, Billy Cobham, John JR Robinson, etc

How Chick talked him out of a classical career, the switch to electric, Romantic Warrior, why it ended, and losing Chick. We talk School Days and being the first bass player to headline his own shows. The Alembic that changed his sound, his solo records, the great George Duke, and how a jazz bass player ended up scoring, meeting a young John Singleton, and writing the music for Boyz N The Hood, Poetic Justice, and over 70 film and TV scores.

His new album Last Train To Sanity is INCREDIBLE.

Huge thanks to our friends at DistroKid! DistroKid is the easiest and fastest way to get your music on over 150 platforms worldwide! Go to https://distrokid.com/vip/elmo to get 20% off your first year!

Elmo Lovano drinks Intelligentsia coffee because he’s an Iced Angeleno. https://www.intelligentsia.com

Become a Patreon Member to stay in the loop as we post Patreon-only exclusive content, ad free episodes, and discussions about music and music careers. https://www.patreon.com/gowithelmo

Stanley Clarke, George Duke - Sweet Baby: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6AHjroSkfM

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Episode 111: Hit-Boy is one of the biggest producers in modern day music. He's produced some of the biggest songs for Kanye West, Jay-Z, Nas, Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Drake, Travis Scott, Big Sean and Nipsey Hussle. He's a 3x Grammy winner. He gave Jay-Z the first diamond record of his career, off a beat that six artists turned down before it ever got to him.

This Hit-Boy interview is different than the others he's done. We go deep into the craft, how the beats actually get made, cut, released, and paid! Why he's numbered every single beat he's made since 2006, and what happened to the 1,600 nobody picked. We got into all of it. Making "Backseat Freestyle" for Ciara before Kendrick ever heard it. Producing a #1 country record for Beyoncé. Being flat broke in 2017 with a future #1 already sitting on his hard drive. Getting free after 18 years and putting his new album out himself, on his own site, with no label and no DSPs. He also still makes everything in FL Studio, the same program he started on at 15 years old in Fontana, California.

He's one of the most important producers of the last 15 years and he's still working like he has something to prove. His biggest days are still ahead of him. This one's for anybody who makes music in the modern world, especially hip hop and pop. I hope you enjoy my interview with the legendary, Hit-Boy!

Huge thanks to our friends at DistroKid! DistroKid is the easiest and fastest way to get your music on over 150 platforms worldwide! Go to https://distrokid.com/vip/elmo to get 20% off your first year!

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Please SUBSCRIBE / FOLLOW this podcast to catch new episodes as soon as they drop! Your likes, comments and shares are much appreciated!

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#hitboy #hiphop #rapproducer #musicproducer

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