Earl Hudson (Bad Brains)
The ferocious, Earth-shaking drummer from the D.C. hardcore band Bad Brains started as a jazz drummer. He switched from traditional to matched grip and started playing at light-speed. Hudson played like a man possessed, and solidified himself as the prime example for the east coast hardcore drumming technique while remaining authentic to his reggae and jazz roots. If you haven't listened to Bad Brains' 1982 self-titled unmastered album, you absolutely should.
JR Robinson
Robinsons is mostly known for making smash pop hits with KILLER percussion tracks (Pointer Sisters “I’m So Excited,” Steve Winwood’s “Higher Love,” a big chunk of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memory), Robinson laid the rhythm for Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall. According to the late Michael Jackson; “I wanted a drum lick that the whole world could sing… and they sang it.”