In the world of rock and roll, there are a few iconic figures whose names will forever be linked with the music they created. For example, everyone knows who Jimi Hendrix is, even if they don’t know what kind of music he played. Or John Lennon – you can’t think of The Beatles without him. And then there’s Lenny Kravitz. If you’re a fan of Lenny Kravitz, you know that he never holds back when it comes to his music. His hard-hitting style is evident in every performance, and it’s clear that he puts everything he has into his music.

You may not know Lenny himself played the drums on almost all of his albums.

The Lenny Krawitz drummers were/are:

  • Zoro
  • Dave Domanich
  • Cindy Blackman
  • Craig Ross
  • Franklin Vanderbilt (touring drummer)

Some played only live, some only in the studio, some both.

Zoro

Zoro or Daniel Donnelly is one of the most famous and most respected drummers in today’s world, not just because he has an excellent feel for music but also due to his drive, which allows him to play any style with ease.

Zoro has enjoyed working with some major artists and musicians, including Lenny Kravitz, Bobby Brown, and Frankie Valli (The Four Seasons). He’s also been voted number one R&B drummer in Modern Drummer Magazine and received awards from other publications such ‘Drum!’

Zoro played in Lenny’s live band after his first album, Let Love Rule, was released in 1989.

He also performed in the studio on Lenny’s second album “Mama Said” on a track “What Goes Around Comes Around”.

Dave Domanich

Dave is not a drummer but an engineer and a producer who worked with Lenny in 1993 on his second album, “Are you gonna go my way”.

We couldn’t find much information about him. However, we know that he played drums and guitar on the track “Heaven Help.”

This song entered charts but only for a brief moment and was included on Lenny’s Greatest hits albums.

Cindy Blackman

When people say Lenny Krawitz drummer, they probably think of Cindy. Not just did she play the drums for Krawitz, but she was in a romantic relationship with him.

Although she played the drums for 18 years with Ktawitz live, her only studio performance was on the song “Straight Cold Player” on his fifth album “5”.

Blackman has recorded several jazz albums as a bandleader and performed with Pharoah Sanders, Sonny Simmons, Ron Carter Sam Rivers, Cassandra Wilson, Angela Bofill Buckethead, Bill Laswell, Lenny Kravitz, Joe Henderson Joss Stone.

Now she is known as Cindy Blackman Santana. Carlos Santana proposed to Blackman on stage during a concert at Tinley Park, Illinois. The musicians were playing, and she had just finished a drum solo when he got down onto one knee with an engagement ring in hand! They were married later in Maui, Hawaii.

Is Cindy Blackman a good drummer?

Cindy is one of the best jazz/rock drummers in the world. We recently published post, “The best female drummers“. Check it out to find out more about Cindy.

Who does Cindy Blackman drum for?

She currently plays in her husband’s Carlos Santana band. In September 2020, she released an album, “Give the drummer some”, with her on drums and vocals. Album features incredible guitarists such as Kirk Hammett from Metallica, John McLaughlin and her husband, Carlos Santana.

Craig Ross

Ross started touring with Krawitz in 1991 after the album “Mama Said”. He co-wrote and played the guitars on various tracks like “Are you gonna go my way”, “Spinning around over you”, “Lady”, “Stillness of heart”, and many more.

He played guitar in his live band and cooperated with Lenny for more than twenty years, but his only drum performance was on the album “Baptism” on tracks he co-wrote “Lady” and “Where Are We Runnin’?”.

Craig is one of the most talented guitar players in modern music. He has been a critical contributor to countless hit records, including Sheryl Crow’s Mick Jaggerr’, B.B King and Eric Clapton.

In 2003, Ross played on an album by The Black Crowes and their guitarist Marc Ford. He also performed with Lenny Kravitz at a Kennedy Center Honors tribute to Led Zeppelin in 2012, where they covered “Whole Lotta Love”.

Franklin Vanderbilt (touring drummer)

He started playing the drums in a local church at a very young age. He was influenced by jazz musicians such as Ramsey Lewis, Orbert Davis, Willie Pickens and Ernie Adams and his uncle Robert Vanderbilt, who had his gospel group.

His first professional gig was as a percussionist for the jazz pianist, Ghalib Ghalib. Playing with Ghalab opened doors for him, so he continues to perform with Liquid Soul and Chaka Khan. He also worked with Ritchie Kotzen, Stanley Clarke and Billy Sheehan from time to time.

Franklin established a fierce reputation as a drummer by working with all these legends, which earned him an invitation in 2007 from Lenny Krawitz to join his band.

Today, Franklin is the official drummer for Lenny Krawitz live band.

Lenny Krawitz

Although he had several drummers for live performances, Lenny recorded 99% of his drum tracks by himself.

“Drumming is my life blood. I can’t imagine not having drums in my life.” – Lenny Kravitz.

He also plays guitar, bass guitar, and percussion, sings and writes. His style can be described as blues, rock, RnB, pop, hip-hop and reggae.

From 1998-2001, Lenny Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance four years. He set records with this accomplishment and became only one of two artists to win consecutive awards.

Kravitz began his musical career at five with pots and pans, playing them as drums. He soon added guitar to create an unforgettable sound that would lead him through many stages in life- including becoming one of America’s most successful musicians ever!

Who is the drummer in Lenny Kravitz Low?

Although Lenny played the drums in the studio, Jas Kayser is the drummer who made and appearance in the video.

She is a UK based drummer who played with various artists such as Jacques Schwartz-Bart, Donald Harrison and Luciana Souza.

She currently plays with her band RISE.