From Rhythm to Rhodes
Family. Church. Rhythm. Discovery. A lifetime of sound.
"Drums were my instrument, and I loved every bit of it..."
- That was the beginning -
When I was about two years old, I got my first drum set. From there, anything I could hit became part of the kit. All through elementary school, drums were my instrument, and I loved every bit of it.My grandmother, my mother, and eventually my oldest sister all played piano or organ. As a kid, somehow I got it in my head that keyboards were a woman’s instrument, so I stayed with my drums. Still, there was always a piano or a Hammond B3 organ in our living room, and I could usually sit down and pick out a pretty good melody by ear.
Then one day, after one of the many church revivals and convocations I grew up attending, I saw a kid about my age playing the organ.
He was good. Better than me, at least.
But watching him, I remember thinking, “If I practice, I can do that too.”
“You have to make up your mind that you want to play.”
I started practicing seriously, trying to play everything I heard and everything I saw other musicians do. I was making progress when my Uncle George — the oldest of my mother’s four brothers, all of them extremely gifted musicians — said something to me that stuck:
Eventually, I did.
When I went back to him with that decision, he gave me a box of cassette tapes. Yes — tapes.
I had no idea at the time how important that box would become.
Inside were :
- THE BOX THAT OPENED THE DOOR -
OSCAR PETERSON • CHICK COREA • GEORGE DUKE • JEFF LORBER • RAMSEY LEWIS • JOE SAMPLE • WEATHER REPORT • YELLOWJACKETS • RETURN TO FOREVER • FOURPLAY
That box introduced me to sounds, players, harmony, rhythm and possibilities I hadn’t even known existed.
Looking back, those tapes became the soil and seed for so much of the musician I would eventually become. Gospel gave me my foundation. The drums gave me rhythm. The organ gave me another voice. And that box opened the door to an entire world of music I’m still exploring today.
- Making Up My Mind -
Suddenly, the musical world I knew became much bigger...
- More Than an Influence -
He was showing me how to be a musician, not simply how to play an instrument.
And whenever I would hit one of those moments where the music frustrated me... when something wasn’t coming together, or I felt like I wasn’t getting it... Eric had a simple answer:
My Uncle George kept telling me I had to make up my mind about what I wanted to do because he would see me following another musician all over town...
That musician was Eric Reed.
Eric was already a local celebrity to me, but our connection went much deeper than music. He was my mother’s god-brother, our families were close, and somewhere along the way Eric took me under his wing.
From the time I was about fifteen, well into adulthood, I watched everything he did...
How he played... how he practiced... how he dressed... how he carried himself... how he approached the music and the life that came with it.
I followed him so closely that people sometimes noticed I dressed like him... and we naturally even favored each other a little.
Eric was never merely somebody I was trying to imitate.
“Tone... you just have to dig in."
That stayed with me...
Dig in... listen harder... practice longer... go deeper... don’t run from the part that’s difficult.
Over the years, Eric’s influence reached far beyond the piano. He helped shape the way I thought about musicianship, discipline, presentation, artistry, and what it meant to take the gift seriously.
My Uncle George was telling me to make up my mind...
Eric was showing me what that decision could become...
He became more like an older brother to me... a friend, mentor, teacher, and, without question, one of the biggest influences on my life.
I kept digging in...
From That Box... to The Boxx
That box of tapes never really left me...
What my Uncle George gave me was more than a collection of music. It became a place of discovery... a place where I learned, listened, imagined and began to understand what was possible.
So whatever room, studio, basement, corner or creative space I happened to be working from became The Boxx Studios.
The location has changed over the years... but the idea never has.
Years later, when I started creating spaces of my own to write, arrange, produce and record, I kept coming back to that idea of the box.
The Boxx is the place where I go to discover what’s next...
TONEOLOGY
Music made by Toney.
- What it sounds like now -
Somewhere along the way, listening became practicing... practicing became playing... and playing became creating.
I started writing my own music... arranging it... producing it... recording it... performing it... and learning how to take something that only existed in my head and turn it into something other people could hear.
Over the years, everything that shaped me began to blend together. Gospel... jazz... soul... R&B... funk... hip-hop... the drums... the organ... the piano... the records... the people... the lessons... the life.
Eventually, I stopped trying to figure out what box the music belonged in.
At this point in my life, I’m not trying to prove that I can play anymore… and I’m not trying to fit neatly into somebody else’s idea of what my music should be.
I’m building what belongs to me… maintaining what matters… and finally leaving enough room to live inside the life I’ve created.
Every Moment is a reflection of that place in my life.
The people… the places… the faith… the changes… the disappointments… the joy… the memories… all of it found its way into the music.
And that brings me to Every Moment...
Every Moment isn’t the end of the story…
It’s what the story sounds like right now.
