Tony Royster Jr. has been busy. We caught up with him while he was home for a couple of days from globetrotting with En Vogue. “En Vogue needs someone to hold down the pocket while they’re singing,” the former child phenom says. “I have my spaces where I’m just playing the groove. It’s a three-piece band where we mostly play to tracks, but the music is so open that it allows me to do fills. And at the end of the show, they give us time to shine and do our thing.”

You’ll be seeing a lot more than groove playing on Royster’s recently released DVD, Pure Energy, produced by DW Drums. The drummer explains his hand and foot technique, demonstrates some soloing, and talks about his equipment. He has one segment dedicated solely to performance. “Most videos are focused on either education or performing, and I wanted to mix it up and have both. I wanted to create something that would inspire beginners as well as intermediate and advanced players.”

On the DVD, Tony played a large DW kit, while with En Vogue, he uses a seven-piece kit with five cymbals. “The music isn’t based around me, so that’s all I need.” During his off time, Tony has been working with his own band, Imagine, as well as with the rock band Lazyeye. (For more info, go to www.tonyroysterjr.com.) Advertisement

Robyn Flans