Kojo Melché Roney

Country: US

Band or Affiliations: Bandleader, Composer, Influencer, Actor

Current Kit Setup:
Broadkaster in Yellow Gloss
14”x18“ BD, 8”x12” TT, 9”x13” TT, 14”x14” FT, 15”x15” FT, 6”x14” SD

Influences:
The linage of what’s known as “Jazz Music” and its generational presence as a profession in my family and our culture is the reason I do what I do behind the drums. But something about the drum linage from Art Blakey, Elvin Jones, Max Roach, Philly Joe Jones to Tony Williams and all the guys in between was something that was always special to me in my heart. As a young person when ever I heard those drummers play it felt like the drum gods reached down from the heavens, grabbed and never let go, even until this day. Drummers like Roy Haynes, Jimmy Cobb, Michael Carvin, Louis Hayes, Al Foster, Milford Graves, Lenny White and many more were prominent figures that I was able to see live and interact with that heavily influenced me to perform the way I do and My close relationships with them allowed me to connect to the jazz drum linage on a very a personal level.
One of my very first and biggest influences included that of my great grandmother who used to tell me stories of her experiences seeing and dancing to “the amazing little man behind the drum”. The man in which she referred to was Chick Webb.

We asked...Why Gretsch?:
"I come out of the school of “jazz” Drumming through my close relationships as a young person with the many greats in the business especially the great drummers who really helped paved the way for my development, and I was always made aware that Gretsch was one of the main drum companies that paralleled and worked with the drummers who shaped the modernization of the drum kit from its earlier days in the early 20th century United States from snare drum and bass drum to how we know and love the drum kit in todays modern form. The legacy of Gretsch that has been upheld by drummers from Chick Webb to Art Blakey to Tony Williams and Gretsch has assisted these drummers with a tool that shaped the world’s idea of what drums should sound like and because of my love and duty to represent, I, from a young age made it a point to continue that tradition in homage and continuation to the rich jazz drum legacy. Today Gretsch is still making drums the authentic American way just like they’ve always been and what better way to represent the Drum legacy then with that great Gretsch sound. Playing Gretsch to me isn’t just a great opportunity to look forward to fulfilling, it’s an historical statement and as we drummers continue to travel into the future we can’t forget the history in which allowed us and our imaginations to do what we do today."

Advice to aspiring musicians?:
"Stay true to your passion with what ever you do, don’t let anyone discourage you from your aspirations as those are the things that will take you furthest in life. And don’t forget to have fun."

Bio:
At a young age, Kojo Melché Roney took interest in the Drums and their distinctive history in American culture, instantly deciding at a very young age, to take on music performance as a profession, maturing through the guidance of both his father, Antoine Roney and his mother, Nia Love and in vain, his grandparents Marguerite Robinson-Chapman and Roosevelt Sherman, who were important unsung heroes in Jazz History and the overall entertainment business through TV/film as well.

By the age of 8yrs old he was Featured on his first tour in Europe, which was the start of his professional music encounters as a sideman and the rise of his popularity worldwide as he traveled and performed in Countries like France, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Israel, Serbia, Germany, Austria, Poland, Mexico, Ivory Coast and many more.

At age 11 he was handpicked by Alicia Keys to be featured alongside herself in her first Levi’s Commercial and Kojo began to dive into the world of film, staring in a documentary the very next year entitled “Kojo: a Short Documentary” (directed by Michael Fequiere & released in 2016) focusing on his young life as a Musician and his development as an established professional musician.
His documentary has a track record of 13 award nominations and currently holds the winning trophy to the tiff. (Toronto International Film Festival) Best Documentary award and the Best Short Documentary and Best Short Documentary Director at the Tulsa American Film Festival including five others.

Continuing his journey in film alongside his music, Kojo continued to document and publish his journeys around the world in the form of short self published films like “Navajo Country” and “I'm a Jazz Musician” attracting huge amounts of attention through Youtube and social media during his early development.
Later in 2018, Kojo was featured in Shawn Mendes’ music video “Youth” as well as was casted to play starring role as “Job” in Film Festival touring Film “Paris is in Harlem” furthermore growing his popularity within the film industry and the young world.
In the more recent year of 2022, Kojo starred on Quincy Jones’ music film platform QWEST.TV on a series entitled: “One Night Stand”, an episodic series that showcases the beauty of spontaneous, free and creative music. The series was listed as No. 2 on QWEST.TV’s most watched list, during the height of the COVID19 pandemic, giving listeners a peak back into the world of live music due to its absence during the period of quarantine.

Kojo Melché Roney has performed with and is endorsed by the Masters of multi-genre music like (his uncle, Grammy award winning artist and student of Miles Davis) Wallace Roney, Buster Williams, Ron Carter, Chick Corea, Hamiet Bluiett, Gary Bartz, his father Antoine Roney and many more. He also performed special performances with his mother Choreographer/Dancer and Movement Artist, Nia Love.

Highlights of his young life includes his close friendships and mentorship by that of great drummers. People like Milford Graves, Jazz legend drummer Roy Haynes, Louis Hayes, Al Foster, Michael Carvin, Grady Tate, Lenny White, Jack Dejohnette, Cindy Blackman Santana, Jimmy Cobb, James Mtumé and more.
Now he is taking matters into his own hands, having released his debut Album as a bandleader in 2024 entitled: Psychedelic at age of 19, under the AWAL/Sony Music label, coming into his own as a leader.
The continuum of his cinematic work is represented through his new short film release through AWAL/Sony entitled: Golden Ghosts: A Short Film showcasing the elegance, intelligence and excitement he visually produces while performing behind the drum kit into the world of Film, as well as holding up the Tradition of Live Performance.

Kojo continues to have a heavy influence on his generation by pioneering the live music scene of today, being an advocate of young elegance and intelligence and at the same time maintaining the thrilling excitement of his known artistic Virtuosity behind the drum kit and representation of modern American powerhouse drumming and futuristic musical composing.