The 15 Best Female Drummers of All Time

The drumming industry is mainly populated with male drummers, and we rarely see a female take charge in this space. Though we already know it is literally going to be a banger once they do. These women quite literally had to work twice as hard to get the spot they deserve in the industry. That’s why we accepted the challenge to create a list of the 15 best female drummers of all time.

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The Top 15 Female Drummers of All Time

Although there are already several female drummers taking charge today, there are a select few that have particularly caught our attention. Want to know who? Let’s find out which female drummers are the best reading!

Who is the best female drummer?

Anika Nilles
Hannah Welton
Sheila Cecelia Escovedo
Cindy Blackman
Meytal Cohen
Terri Lynne Carrington
Meg White
Nandi Bushell
Taylor Dorothea
Senri Kawaguchi
Viola Smith
Taylor Gordon
Nikkie Glaspie
Mercedes Lander
Sara Thawer

1. Anika Nilles

Best Female Drummers of All Time — Annika Niles

If you’re a fan of drumming, there’s no way you wouldn’t have heard about Anika Nilles. As one of the most popular female drummers of all time, we’re not even the least bit surprised that Anika has appeared on the cover of several drum magazines. She is best known for her unique style of drumming utilizing sub-divisions.

Anika has literally been in love with drums since she was a kid. She has been playing them since the age of six, and what’s more admiring is that she even went to music school to perfect her talent. As a student at the University of Popular Music & Music Business, Anika knew how to market her talent worldwide.

You would think that Anika Nilles rose to fame through real-life performances. However, she actually gained the most popularity through posting drum videos and cover versions on YouTube. She managed to get over 13 million views and is a full YouTube sensation as you can see from this video.

2. Hannah Welton

Although Hannah Welton is now one of the most popular female drummers of all time, this wasn’t her original career path. Hannah was actually a stage dancer since she was a kid. As soon as she touched her 7th-year milestone, there was no keeping her away from her drums.

Hannah Welton switched to drumming professionally and learned from some of the top teachers and artists in the world, such as Louie Bellson and Ruby Alvarez. When she moved to Chicago at age 12, she got the opportunity to learn from others such as Peter Erskin and Johnny Rabb.

Seeing as how Hannah has been learning the drums professionally from such a young age, it’s no surprise that she is so good at it. She even went to the Chicago College of Performing Arts after high school, where she learned from Grammy-award winner Paul Wertico.

3. Sheila Cecelia Escovedo

You may not have heard about Sheila Cecelia Escovedo, but there’s absolutely no way you haven’t heard her stage name, Sheila E. Sheila is probably one of the only drummers on this list who was born into a musical family. As a result, she was born surrounded by instruments.

You probably heard Sheila play for several popular musicians like Herbie Hancock, George Duke, and even Prince. When asked why she played with Prince, Sheila replied, “The point in me playing with Prince was to let a lot of people know that I can play trap. I don’t think people know that.”

Prince often invited Sheila E to perform at his concerts as you can see below.

However, she even had her own solo album, which actually got her quite a few Grammy and American Music Awards nominations. Sheila even ended up taking home MTV’s Best Video Award, which was a proud moment for the entire fandom.

4. Cindy Blackman

Cindy Blackman actually fell in love with drums when she first saw a drum set at one of her friend’s houses. At only eleven years old, she convinced her parents to buy her a drum set after a ton of whining. As Cindy once said, “Music is there to enrich your life and make you aware of things in a slightly different way,” and we couldn’t agree more.

Cindy was born in Ohio in 1959, a time when females were not popularly seen in the drumming business. But that didn’t stop her from pursuing her passion as she studied music in Boston. Blackman played alongside Lenny Kravitz from 1992 to 2007, but began her career as a street musician in New York.

One of the interesting things to note about Cindy is that she is literally a versatile drummer who can play for any genre. She is most known for her work with raw jazz grooves. What readers may not know is that Cindy has been married to Carlos Santana for 13 years.

5. Meytal Cohen

As a former member of the Israeli army, Meytal Cohen was born in Ramat Gan in 1984. While several drummers on this list started playing the drums from early childhood, Meytal didn’t start until she was 18 years old.

After completing two years of military service, Meytal moved to Los Angeles, where she attended the Los Angeles Music Academy in 2004. She quickly polished her skills, and as soon as she graduated, she already had opportunities lined up in Australia, Mexico, and more.

Meytal Cohen first rose to fame in 2010 when she posted a YouTube video where she was performing drum covers of popular rock songs. After she rose to fame, she founded a band and recorded her first, and literally the most popular, song, Breathe, which became a popular hit and promoted female drummers.

See for yourself as Meytal covers the Tool song, Forty Six & 2.

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6. Terri Lynne Carrington

Terri Lynne Carrington is one of the most popular drum teachers of all time, and she even has a Grammy! You probably know her for much of her work in the jazz genre as a drummer, composer, and bandleader. Pretty cool, right?

What you should also know is that throughout her career, Terri has worked with some of the biggest names in jazz history, and we’re awfully envious of her for that. These include Herbie Hancock, Stan Getz, and Dizzy Gillespie. She has also led several jazz projects and taken them through the roof and straight into the hearts of fans worldwide.

If you’ve attended the Berklee College of Music for drumming, there’s a high chance that you’ve studied under Terri Lynne Carrington. Through her music and teaching, Terri Lyne Carrington is widely considered by many of us as literally one of the most influential jazz drummers of her generation.

7. Meg White

Did you know that Meg White wasn’t really a drummer until she was already part of a band? Meg worked as a waitress, where she met and married John Anthony Gillis in 1996. The two actually ended up starting a band together called the White Stripes.

A year after starting the band, Meg got behind the drums and found the change refreshing and liberating. She even says, “It’s the emotion of it that hits me, more than anything technical.” It is quite intriguing to see how several drummers had gone to school to polish their skills, yet Meg White learned on her own and still managed to be a popular female drummer.

As everything ended, so did the marriage between Meg White and John Anthony Gillis. This resulted in the band being disbanded. Despite this, Meg still continued to perform as a drummer and even managed to help young girls take drum lessons at music schools.

8. Nandi Bushell

While most of the female drummers on this list were in the music scene for quite some time, Nandi Bushell only joined the drumming industry about three years ago at just 13 years old. This literally tells us that there is no age limit to talent and you can be just as good at just as young.

Nandi Bushell has been on YouTube for quite some time and actually gained popularity by posting drum covers that were an absolute delight to watch. She had a small drum kit that fit her age perfectly, and it was absolutely adorable and intriguing to watch her play like a professional.

Check out Nandi Bushell battle Dave Grohl.

Then, one day, she decided to call out Dave Grohl for a drum battle. Surprisingly, he responded! She completely rocked his world. For a drummer at her age to be as good as she is made him smile. From that point on, they proceeded to write quite a few hit songs together.

9. Taylor Dorothea

Although Taylor Dorothea has only recently gained popularity as a female drummer at the age of 73, she has actually been playing the drums since she was 18. By playing for several decades, Taylor managed to master the art of drums, and she is adored by the community.

Taylor Dorothea first rose to fame after she posted a video of herself performing a cover of Down with the Sickness on Drumeo. This wreaked havoc in the drumming community, and everyone just wanted to hear more from Taylor and learn about her inspiring story.

Taylor even showed up on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show.

10. Senri Kawaguchi

To be a great drummer, you need to have skill and control. The fact that Senri Kawaguchi has both is why she is one of the best female drummers of all time. In fact, she was already added to the top 500 drummers around the world when she was literally only 13!

At just 8 years old, Senri Kawaguchi began training with drumming master Kozo Suganuma. She is a versatile drummer who can honestly play any genre if you literally want her to but is most known for her work with a jazz-fusion type of rock style. This actually helps her since it gives her a unique edge over others in the industry.

Senri also has very good snare work. She can play it in a way that is almost becoming lost in time. Currently, she is 25 and has plenty of room to continue growing. We know she will continue to inspire drummers worldwide.

11. Viola Smith

There was no way we could complete this list without mentioning someone who is one of the first female drummers of all time. Viola Smith paved the way for all future female drummers by performing as early as the 1920s, a time when female drummers were nonexistent. Viola also reveals, “Everything comes as a great surprise. I’m very thankful that I’m accepted as a girl drummer because, one time, there was no such thing.”

If you’re in the mood to watch something incredible, we highly recommend a video of Viola playing with The Coquettes. She played using mallets on the kit, and it is one of the most unique things we’ve seen in a long time. It’s quite a spectacle to see how she played her solos.

12. Taylor Gordon

As one of the very few Black female drummers in the industry, we knew that we had to include Taylor Gordon on this list of best female drummers of all time. Also known as the Pocket Queen, Taylor first started playing the drums when she was in the church choir in New Orleans at the age of seven.

We’re so jealous of how Taylor has performed with popular pop musicians like Fifth Harmony, Beyonce, and even Stevie Wonder. She has an eclectic style and certainly gives off the impression that she has the most fun behind the drums, grinning from ear-to-ear as she jams to funky tracks like Din Da Da.

13. Nikkie Glaspie

Another popular Black female drummer on this list is Nikkie Glaspie. We’re so jealous of how Nikkie has worked with several big-name artists like Beyonce, Jay-Z, and Kanye West. Like many musicians on this list, Nikkie also attended the Berklee College of Music and graduated in 2005.

Nikki Glaspie first picked up drumsticks at just two years old. She was inspired by Sheila E., who learned how to play the drums by listening to her church band. Considering that Nikki was inspired by someone as mesmerizing as Sheila, it is no surprise she is as good as she is.

14. Mercedes Lander

drummer Mercedes Lasper — Mercedes Lasper

Mercedes Lander has been a drummer for several bands since she was still in the sixth grade. Her first band was called Kittie, and she created and released several albums with it till 2011. While there hasn’t been anything new posted lately, the band is still together, so we wait in anticipation.

Also, Lander started a second band in 2016 called the White Swan, which is still active to this day. Lander brings a hardcore style of drumming in both Kittie and White Swan. Through her music, she provides the explosive energy necessary for playing the best heavy metal music.

15. Sara Thawer

As someone who came from a musical family, Sara Thawer has been playing music all her life. Born in Canada, Sara was inspired to play the drums after listening to the Indian music her parents would play at home. She would soon be popular for Indian and Latin-inspired beats.

Also nicknamed the Drum Guru, Thawer’s identity is a massive part of her career as a drummer. In fact, it’s what differentiates Thawer from all the rest. Sarah has played with various incredible artists for different musical pieces, including Jon Batiste and sister duo Tegan and Sara.