About Me
Billy Williams, a native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, began playing drums at the age of ten at the Brotherly Love Church of God in Christ in Norfolk, VA under the leadership of his grandfather, Pastor Wilbert R. Miller. His mother, the church Minister of Music, watched him closely and nurtured his gift. The foundation of building a life that was Christ-centered shaped Billy’s outlook on the power of music. The life-long lessons of music MINISTRY, humility and professionalism learned during this time would also prove to be very vital to his career. Now, 35, and a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, Billy has had the opportunity to travel the world extensively as a performer and educator.
Billy has worked professionally with many master musicians including: Larry Willis, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Davis, Warren Wolf, Justin Kauflin, Raul Midon, Delfeayo and Ellis Marsalis, Tim Warfield, Christian McBride, Benny Golson, Gary Bartz, Nat Reeves, and Jon Faddis amongst many others
His talents have afforded him the chance to perform in prestigious venues such as:
Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and The Village Vanguard in New York City; New Morning in Paris, France; Bimhuis in Amsterdam, Netherlands; Singapore Jazz Festival in Singapore; Ronnie Scott's in London, England; Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux, Switzerland; Jazzhus Montmartre in Copenhagen, Denmark; Blue Note Milano in Milan, Italy; Blue Note Tokyo in Tokyo, Japan; Umbria Jazz in Perugia, Italy; Porgy and Bess in Vienna, Austria; Jazz at Lincoln Center in Doha, Qatar; and the Jakarta Jazz Festival in Jakarta, Indonesia amongst many others.
As an educator, Billy has been featured as an Jazz Studies Artist-In-Residence at Duke University (Durham, NC), Centrum Jazz Workshop (Port Townsend, WA), National Conservatory of Music (Asuncion, Paraguay), The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (Eau Claire, WI), JazzSTL (St. Louis, Missouri), and at the Governor’s School for the Arts (Norfolk, VA).
ABOUT
Fun Fact
Billy’s drum and cymbal sound was completely and thoroughly sampled for use for “Straight Ahead! Jazz Drums" and “Straight Ahead! Jazz Brushes and Mallets" sample libraries. The library contains samples, loops, and grooves to allow users to add authentic jazz drum sounds to their electronic sound libraries.
