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Robert Searight
Searight in 2015
Searight in 2015
Background information
Also known asRobert Searight II
Born (1975-03-18) March 18, 1975 (age 49)[1]
Dallas, Texas, United States[1]
OriginDallas
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • composer
  • producer
Instrument(s)Drums, piano, keyboards
Years activec. 1996–present
LabelsIndependent
Member of
Formerly ofToto

Robert "Sput" Searight (born 18th March 1975)[2] is an American drummer, composer and producer best known for his work with jazz fusion band Snarky Puppy and as co-founder of the percussion-based band Ghost-Note. His background spans several genres including jazz, funk, hip-hop and gospel. He has toured and recorded with a variety of artists including Kirk Franklin, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, Erykah Badu and Toto. He has received a Grammy award for his work on the album God's Property.

Life and career

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Searight was born and raised in Dallas, Texas.[1] He grew up in a musical family with a variety of instruments in his childhood home.[3] His mother, Linda Searight, was an operatic singer and music teacher.[4][5] He received his first drum kit at the age of five and started playing drums. He grew up listening to gospel music exclusively, but that changed at age eight with access to a diverse library of vinyl albums. He started taking music lessons in junior high school and, later, attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts, where he played piano and received his first exposure to improvisation in the arts.[3][4] He names gospel drummer Joel Smith as his biggest early influence.[3]

In 1992, while in high school, Searight and his mother Linda founded the gospel choir God's Property.[6] He studied jazz-piano and drums in junior college and then attended University of North Texas and majored in percussion.[1] Soon after, in 1997, God's Property and Kirk Franklin collaborated to produce the eponymous album God's Property, for which Searight won a Grammy award in the category Best Gospel Choir or Chorus Album.[6][7] He started touring extensively in support of the album and settled in Los Angeles.[4] There, he worked as a drummer and producer with a variety of artists, including Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, Kendrick Lamar and Timbaland.[1][4]

In mid-2000s Searight moved back to Dallas and performed in the Dallas R&B-gospel music scene, working with Erykah Badu, Tamela Mann, The Clark Sisters and others.[4][8] In weekly jam sessions he met members of the jazz fusion band Snarky Puppy, at the time a Dallas-based band.[1][3] Around 2006, he joined Snarky Puppy, first as a keyboardist and then as a drummer.[8][3] He has received three Grammys with the ensemble.[9][a] In 2014, Searight and Snarky Puppy percussionist Nate Werth founded Ghost-Note, a percussion-based funk-hip hop-jazz band. He has released two albums with Ghost-Note, Fortified in 2015 and Swagism in 2018.[10] From 2020 to 2023, he joined Toto as the band's drummer and toured with the band.[11]

Discography

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God's Property

Ghost-Note

  • Fortified (2015)
  • Swagism (2018)
  • Mustard n'Onions (2024)

with Snarky Puppy

with Toto

  • With a Little Help from My Friends (2021)

Sessions and production credits selected works[12]

Artist Album
Kirk Franklin
  • The Flight of My Life (2007)
  • Hello Fear (2011)
  • Losing My Religion (2015)
Kendrick Lamar
  • To Pimp a Butterfly (2015)
Shaun Martin
  • 7 Summers (2015)
  • Focus (2018)
Bill Laurance
  • Aftersun (2016)
Terrace Martin
  • Velvet Portraits (2016)
  • Drones (2021)
Kamasi Washington
  • Heaven & Earth (2018)
Myron Butler & Levi
  • Set Me Free (2005)
  • Stronger (2007)
  • Revealed (2010)
Tamela Mann
  • Gotta Keep Movin (2005)
  • The Live Experience (2007)
  • The Master Plan (2009)
  • Best Days (2012)
Marvin Sapp
  • You Shall Live (2015)
  • Close (2017)
Ted Winn
  • Stand in Awe (2017)

Notes

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  1. ^ Searight is credited for Grammy Awards for the song "Something" and albums Sylva and Culcha Vulcha.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Ken Micallef (April 2013). "Snarky Puppy's Robert 'Sput' Searight". Modern Drummer. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  2. ^ "Robert "Sput" Searight Songs, Albums, Reviews,..." AllMusic. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e Alain Merville (April 22, 2020). Legendary Musician Opens Up About His Life Experiences (Robert 'Sput' Searight interview) (Video). Yousicplay.com. Event occurs at 1:15–2:12, 3:05–4:15, 7:55–9:15, 11:40–11:50, 23:45–26:20. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ a b c d e Nick D'Virgilio (March 20, 2018). Interview: Robert 'Sput' Searight of Snarky Puppy (Video). Sweetwater. Event occurs at 7:25–9:00, 9:50–12:10, 14:47–15:25, 16:40–17:10. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ "New Arts Six – The Ensemble". newartssix.org. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Steve Leggett. "AllMusic: God's Property – biography". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 1, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  7. ^ "Grammy Awards: Robert Searight II". grammy.com. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Ken Micallef (November 2015). "Robert 'Sput' Searight". Modern Drummer. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  9. ^ "Grammy Awards: Snarky Puppy". grammy.com. Archived from the original on May 5, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  10. ^ Matt Collar. "AllMusic: Ghost-Note – biography". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  11. ^ Toto 2020 to 2023:
  12. ^ "AllMusic: Robert 'Sput' Searight – credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
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