Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith has long pledged allegiance to his southeast Michigan roots, putting some money behind the sentiment. Smith was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the third child of Joan and Curtis Smith. He spent most of his childhood in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he graduated from Lahser High School in 1980. Smith spent his early years in various rock bands, starting in high school with a band called Paradise which won a battle of the bands in Birmingham, Michigan, in 1977.
Smith is an American musician who is the drummer of the rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith has played with the Chili Peppers since 1988, appearing on ten of the band's studio albums and becoming the band's longest-serving drummer in its history. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.
Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot, formed in 2008, and of the all-instrumental outfit Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats, formed in 2007. In 2020, Smith co-wrote and performed as part of the backing band on Ozzy Osbourne's album, Ordinary Man, and again in 2022 on Patient Number 9. That same year, Smith was a member of Eddie Vedder's backing band, The Earthlings, after co-writing and recording the album, Earthling.
Spin magazine placed Smith at number 91 on their list of the "100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music" in May 2013. Readers of UK-based Rhythm magazine ranked Smith and Red Hot Chili Pepper bassist Flea the fourth-greatest rhythm section of all time in their June 2013 issue. Smith is also known for his charity work especially with young musicians. In April 2013, Smith was asked by the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), to represent the music community by going to Washington, D.C. as a lobbyist in support of music education in US public schools.
Following this, Smith played with Pharroh and Michigan-based band Toby Redd. Pharroh's percussionist Larry Fratangelo, who also worked with Parliament-Funkadelic, introduced Smith to R&B and funk music and taught him how to play funk. Smith said, "I think up until then, I was a drummer.
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In 1988, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were looking for a replacement for their drummer D.H. Peligro, who had recently been fired. Smith joined the Chili Peppers in December 1988. Within a few months, he was recording his first album with the band, Mother's Milk, which was released in 1989. Smith reflected on joining the band in a 2012 interview by saying "I remember thinking, 'Oh, cool, they have a record deal. Great! I'd love to be in a band that has a record deal. We started playing, and right away we just hit it off musically. I was like, 'Man, this is a blast! These guys are great!' ... We were just doing what we do. We just jammed, which is what we still do today.
Following a lengthy world tour in support of Stadium Arcadium, the Chili Peppers decided to take a break in 2008. During this break, Smith joined the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot, whose other members are Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani and Michael Anthony. The group has released two studio albums, a live album and a box set to date with Smith.
Smith released an app in March 2012, which is a free mobile application for iPhone, iPad, and Android devices and features his "Drummer GPS". The GPS section of the app spotlights drummers Smith has been influenced by and those he regards as some of the best modern drummers. Smith joined Sammy Hagar in the studio to work on music for what would become Hagar's sixteenth studio album.
Starting on January 20, 2017, Smith began hosting Landmarks Live in Concert, an eight-episode concert series on PBS in which Smith will sit down and discuss music with various artists. Smith performs drums on the Lorne Balfe composed score for The Lego Batman Movie. On May 28, 2018, Smith along with co-host and Yahoo Entertainment music editor Lyndsey Parker, began their own music radio talk show on SiriusXM titled VOLUME West which airs every Monday.
Smith performs drums on the Post Malone song "Take What You Want" from his third album Hollywood's Bleeding. That collaboration with Post Malone led to the creation of Osbourne's 2020 album, Ordinary Man, which Smith co-wrote along with Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan and producer Andrew Watt. Smith performs drums on Ozzy Osbourne's 2022 album, Patient Number 9. Smith performs on seven of the songs and also co-wrote five songs on Iggy Pop's 2022 album, Every Loser.
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On July 5, 2025, Smith performed at Back to the Beginning, an all-day concert held in Birmingham as a final farewell show for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. Smith performed in Tom Morello's All Stars supergroup which included Morello, Steven Tyler, Sammy Hagar, Nuno Bettencourt and other musicians. Smith also had a drum off with Travis Barker and Rudy Sarzo. The concert also raised $190 million for charity.
While in DC, Smith had the opportunity to meet with congressional leaders and share his experience as a student who learned his craft entirely within the public school system. In 2014, Smith joined Bystander Revolution a group that speaks out against bullying in schools and tries to find solutions. Smith adopted a school in Greenfield, California also lobbied Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner for increased funding for arts education and that it is a personal issue for him.
Smith appeared at Sammy Hagar and James Hetfield's 2nd annual Acoustic-4-A-Cure benefit concert in San Francisco, California on May 15, 2015. The benefit was held to raise money and awareness for the Pediatric Cancer Program at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital. On April 29, 2016, Chad Smith and Will Ferrell hosted the Red Hot Benefit Comedy + Music Show & Quinceanera. On February 12, 2018, Smith again teamed with Will Ferrell for his One Classy Night event at the Moore Theater in Seattle to help raise money for Cancer for College.
On January 13, 2019, Smith along with the Chili Peppers performed at a benefit for victims of the recent deadly Woolsey Fire. On August 19, 2025, Smith announced that he was starting the "Chad Smith Foundation" music school which will provide scholarships, music equipment and music education to kids. In January 2020, Smith opened his first art exhibit, stating "The way that I want to interpret my feelings about playing the drums and playing music - I'm trying to put this in a different medium. Smith has been married twice.
At an MTV Spring Break concert in 1990, Smith and his bandmate Flea were accused of sexually harassing a 20-year-old woman as she was dancing during the concert. Like some of his bandmates in the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smith has struggled with substance abuse. He struggled with alcoholism and cocaine use for many years. Smith is also an avid fan of his hometown Michigan sports teams, including the NHL's Detroit Red Wings.
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Following the Red Hot Chili Peppers May 14, 2017, performance in Columbus, Ohio, Smith sang the University of Michigan fight song "The Victors". Smith's singing of the fight song made national news as the University of Michigan and Ohio State are longtime sports rivals. Smith is widely known for his strong facial resemblance to actor and comedian Will Ferrell, which he has acknowledged by wearing shirts reading "I Am Not Will Ferrell" in live performances.
While scuba diving on vacation near Wakaya Island on November 12, 1992, following the Red Hot Chili Peppers' tour of Australia, Smith was attacked by an approximately three-meter hammerhead shark. He was diving offshore when the shark began circling him. Smith attempted to keep still as the shark approached, then fended it off when it attempted to bite him. Afterwards, the shark swam away.
âA lot of people (say), âThe Chili Peppers, West Coast band, California this and California that.â I get it. I was born in St. Paul, Minnesota,â Smith told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday, just hours before he made the official announcement during a surprise appearance at the Ann Arbor schoolâs annual Band-O-Rama event. âThe Minnesota connection is strong. âAnd thatâs why weâre here.
The scholarship is a partnership between the School of Music, Theatre & Dance and the Chad Smith Foundation and comes on the heels of one with the same name launched two months ago at the University of Minnesota. Smith's parents are Minnesota alums. Michiganâs version of the Curtis & Joan Smith Scholarship will support incoming freshmen to the School of Music, Theatre & Dance undergraduate program who demonstrate financial need and a strong commitment to pursuing a music career. The scholarship reinforces CSF's mission to expand access to high-quality music education and career pathways for aspiring musicians across the country.
Smith attended Lahser High School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and began his career playing in clubs and bars across the Detroit area. Smith has been with the Red Hot Chili Peppers since the late 1980s. The Chili Peppers were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.
"I'm fortunate to be in a band people like and I play the drums and maybe some drummers or musicians will get inspired just from my story," Smith said.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, who grew up in suburban Detroit, is gifting a need-based music scholarship to the University of Michigan."A lot of people (say), 'The Chili Peppers, West Coast band, California this and California that.' I get it. I was born in St. Paul, Minnesota," Smith told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday, just hours before he made the official announcement during a surprise appearance at the Ann Arbor school's annual Band-O-Rama event. "The Minnesota connection is strong. The Michigan connection is strong."And that's why we're here.
The Curtis & Joan Smith Scholarship, which is named in honor of Smith's parents, will be awarded to an incoming University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance student, beginning in 2026. "So, to be able to honor her (and) my father, unfortunately, passed away, but they were so integral in helping me with my musical path."
During that time, the quartet, which also includes singer Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea, have been one of the biggest-selling music acts, mixing layers of funk, punk, rap and traditional pop over a foundation of rock. The backward-baseball-cap-wearing Smith has held down the beat on such hits as "Give It Away," "Under the Bridge" and "Dani California."
During a surprise performance Sunday (Nov. 2) with the University of Michigan Marching Band, the Bloomfield Hills-bred Smith announced a scholarship in partnership with U-Mâs School of Music, Theatre & Dance. The $40,000 scholarship â named in honor of his mom, Joan, and late dad, Curtis â is administered by the Chad Smith Foundation, which he launched in August.
âMichigan has such a very strong music program,â Smith told the Free Press last week. âThey're well known, and I'm just honored to a little part of that.â He described the catalyst for his music-oriented foundation, whose team includes several family members.
âMy passion for music, art and education is really the backbone of this. There are students that need help either financially or equipment-wise or places to play or connecting,â Smith said. âWe want to give that opportunity to them to pursue their dreams, like I did when I was a very young person in Detroit, growing up in Bloomfield Hills and going to Lahser High School.â
The Grammy-winning drummer, who turned 64 last month, was an unannounced special guest at Sundayâs Band-O-Rama in Ann Arbor, an annual Hill Auditorium event showcasing U-Mâs concert band, symphony band and marching band. Smith took to a drumkit for the marching bandâs rendition of âCanât Stop,â the 2003 Chili Peppers song thatâs among the array of hits Smith has recorded in his 37-year tenure with the band.
His U-M scholarship will fund incoming students starting next year. Smith's foundation launched a similar music scholarship at the University of Minnesota, his parentsâ alma mater. He landed the Red Hot Chili Peppers gig just months after migrating to L.A. in 1988.
And despite his folksâ Minnesota connections and a pair of siblings who attended Michigan State University, the drummer is a dyed-in-the-wool Michigan fan, a loyalty he loves to flaunt when the Chili Peppers play Columbus in the backyard of Ohio State.
âI rock a big yellow âMâ on the kick drum, I sing the fight song, and itâs the loudest response of the whole night,â Smith said with a laugh. âThey just boo the crap out of me, man. I love it. Iâm maize-and-blue all the way.â
Smith has bold ambitions for his foundation, saying he's at a life stage where years of success allow him to give back. Heâs especially passionate about the value of music in schools â and he speaks from first-hand experience.
âI wouldnât be here today, doing what I have been doing, if I didnât have that opportunity,â he said. âAt Lahser, there was concert band, symphonic band, jazz band, marching band, even a music theory club. If I didn't have all that, I would have never graduated, and who knows what would have happened.â
Smith's new home state scholarship is a tribute to the legacy of his parents. âMy mother â 98 years young â is still living in the house I grew up in,â he said. âMy father was a 32-year Ford Motor Company guy at the world headquarters in Dearborn. We just have all these really good connections in Michigan.
Chad Smith with the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Hereâs a summary of Chad Smithâs career highlights and contributions:
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Early Life | Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, graduated from Lahser High School. |
| Career Start | Played in various rock bands in high school and later with Pharroh and Toby Redd. |
| Red Hot Chili Peppers | Joined in 1988, longest-serving drummer, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. |
| Other Bands | Drummer for Chickenfoot and Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats. |
| Collaborations | Recorded with Glenn Hughes, Johnny Cash, Ozzy Osbourne, Iggy Pop and many others. |
| Philanthropy | Started the Chad Smith Foundation, supporting music education with scholarships at the University of Michigan and the University of Minnesota. |
| Advocacy | Lobbyist for music education in US public schools, supporter of anti-bullying initiatives. |
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