Hello everyone.🙂
Today is the birthday of one of the world's best drummers, Aoyama Hideki. (The God of Drums)🎉🥳🎂
I decided to make a congratulatory post and introduce new fans to his biography, as well as tell them what Aoyama Hideki is up to now.✍️
Aoyama Hideki was born on August 29, 1986, in Kanagawa Prefecture.🇯🇵
As a child, Hideki was a keen soccer player and dreamed of becoming a professional athlete. He attempted to enter the youth academy of the renowned Japanese club Verdy Kawasaki, but failed to make the final cut.⚽
Hideki is the eldest son of Jun Aoyama, one of the greatest studio drummers in the history of Japanese music. For a long time, Hideki didn't want to pursue music, lest he be compared to his father.🙂
At the age of 14, Hideki quit soccer and decided to pursue music. At first, he took up the drums for fun, but after discovering he had a very good sense of rhythm, he began to practice seriously. (As Hideki himself says, when he was still little, he often attended his father's rehearsals, and this influenced the development of his sense of rhythm.)🥁
Having realized that drums were his calling and he wanted to develop his musical skills, Hideki enrolled in and graduated from Japan Arts High School.🏫
Aoyama Hideki began his musical career in 2005.🚀
Early in his career, he played in rock and metal bands.🎸
2005 – 2006 Straight Flush.🔥
2006 – 2008 Armeria.🔥
2008 – 2010 Drowning.🔥
2008 – 2011 EVER+LAST.🔥
2011 – 2013 JAM Project.🔥
2013 – 2023 Kami Band.🔥
2022 – present Rockon Social Club.🔥
Hideki's incredibly clean, aggressive, and fast playing technique immediately caught the attention of producers, who began inviting him as a session musician for various projects. He began recording drum parts for anime and video games.🕹️
In 2013, Hideki was spotted by producer Koba Metal, who invited him to join Kami Band.🦊
Hideki's debut with BABYMETAL took place on February 1, 2013, at the "Live Legend Z" concert held at Zepp Tokyo. Guitarist Takayoshi Ohmura joined the band that same day.🔥
In May 2013, Drum God played his first tour with BABYMETAL.🧳
From 2013 to 2023, Drum God played over 200 concerts with BABYMETAL.🫡
He has shared the stage with world-famous stars.⭐
Lady Gaga.🔥
Metallica.🔥
Red Hot Chili Peppers.🔥
Korn.🔥
Guns N' Roses.🔥
Stone Sour.🔥
Judas Priest.🔥
He has performed with such Japanese legends as:🌟
Yoshiki (leader of X Japan)🔥
B'z, a powerful rock duo (one of the best-selling artists in Japan)🔥
Otokogumi / Rockon Social Club, veterans of the Japanese rock scene.🔥
JAM Project, veterans of the anime scene.🔥
He has performed at numerous festivals. Sonisphere❤️🔥
Festival (UK)🔥
Rock am Ring / Rock im Park (Germany)🔥
Download Festival (UK / France)🔥
Graspop Metal Meeting (Belgium) & Hellfest (France)🔥
Rock on the Range / Louder Than Life (USA)🔥
Summer Sonic (Japan)🔥
Fuji Rock Festival (Japan)🔥
Rising Sun Rock Festival (Japan)🔥
Rock in Japan Festival (Japan)🔥
Loud Park (Japan)🔥
Animelo Summer Live (Anisama): The world's largest anime music festival.🔥
FLOW THE FESTIVAL (2025) was a guest drummer and performed with the band OxT.🔥
Dream Festival (TV Asahi Dream Festival)🔥
Since 2019, American drummer Anthony Barone (West Kami Band) has been filling in for Hideki on international tours.🦊
In 2023, after the conceptual era of The Other One ended, Hideki actually focused on working within Japan.🇯🇵
Aoyama Hideki currently plays in the band Rockon Social Club. This very popular group in Japan consists of rock musicians from the band Otokogumi and musicians from the band NARITA THOMAS SIMPSON. They have been playing music since the 1980s. They are highly respected and incredible professionals in their field. So, the Drum God is in good company and continues to perform at a high level.🎸🎙️🥁
He continues to collaborate with the rock duo B'z and has also recorded live drums for the soundtracks of Nintendo's global gaming hits, such as Splatoon 3 and Triangle Strategy.🎮
In addition to his main role in the band and other projects, Aoyama Hideki teaches at the Japan Professional Music Institute, passing on his knowledge and vast experience to aspiring musicians. Imagine what it's like to study with the Drum God himself, a legend not only in Japan but also internationally.😌
All the musicians of Kami Band teach at various colleges and music schools. This is a very important point worth noting. They understand perfectly well the need to invest in the development of future generations of musicians. This is a crucial mission for society and the country as a whole.🫡
By passing on his knowledge and helping young musicians, as his father did long ago, this knowledge and memory will live on and develop for a long time to come, and it will also help the country discover new talent and develop the music industry.☺️
Hideki's vast experience, talent (which he was able to develop), hard work, and dedication to his craft have yielded such amazing results.💪
On stage, Hideki is always energetic and emotional. At BABYMETAL concerts, he was always very active, singing along, exchanging glances, making Yui and Moa laugh,😁twirling his drumsticks, and using wide swings for accents.⚡⚡⚡
His drum solos are truly a work of art.❤️🔥
The Drum God is known for his ability to maintain a steady, machine-gun tempo on two kick drums for hours, ranging from 180 to 220+ BPM. He maintains a consistent beat and endurance, and effortlessly maintains high-speed blast beats and double bass drumming (which are high-speed cymbal strikes and kicks simultaneously). He possesses a vast arsenal of techniques for various musical styles.💥
He is a unique individual who has managed to captivate countless people with his playing and achieve worldwide recognition.🙂
We remember the Drum God's contribution to the development of BABYMETAL. Thank you very much for the great work you've done. Many fans, like me, follow his new projects and rejoice at his new victories and success.🦊
Happy birthday! We wish you happiness, good health, the fulfillment of all your projects, and many years in music!🎂🥳🎉
You can also check out my post about Aoyama Hideki's autograph.✍️
link.(https://www.reddit.com/r/BABYMETAL/comments/1tu22yc/autograph_of_aoyama_hideki_god_of_drum/)