© Ray McMahon/Corbis
Stephen Asamoah-Duah. Remember the name. He came, he saw, he wowed us with his incredible chops and groove at yesterday's Young Drummer of the Year final.
The 14-year-old Londoner (whose entry video you can see below) took top prize in a highly-competitive show judged by Clem Cattini, Ash Soan, Jon Hiseman and several other star tub thumpers.
After pulling of a superb two-minute solo and two perfectly executed band tracks (one of which he and the event's other competitors had only heard for the first time on the morning of the show), Stephen was crowned the winner.
"I've been playing drums for 12 years, I started when I was two years old," Stephen told us. "I was speechless [on his name being read out as the winner]. I was just so shocked."
On his band performances, Stephen added: "When it comes to playing with an artist or band the main thing is that the drums are not the main thing unless you're called to solo. Your job is to hold back and keep a groove for the audience to feel it.
"That was my aim, to just let the judges feel it and feel the groove of the song so they could bop their heads to what was being played."
Well done to all ten drummers who made the final and provided a great showcase of young drumming talent. Look at out for more on the finals, and more from Stephen, in a future issue of Rhythm.
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