For the last 15 years, Ben Sesar has been both live and studio drummer for the Grammy award winning singer, songwriter and guitarist Brad Paisley. This gig has given Ben a perspective on the music industry that few drummers get to experience. Ben offers his insight and philosophy on the business and which obstacles up and coming drummers might face. As a teacher, writer and professed life long student, Ben comes off as a true journey-man who is constantly looking for answers that plague his active drumming mind. Due to the depth of information we cover, we've decided to break this podcast into two parts. Ben discusses the trials of the music business in this first part as well as his decision to reinvent himself by converting to traditional grip after playing match grip most of his life. He also explains how he divides drumming into the "what we play" and "how we play", and the benefits of understanding the difference. We have included the talents of photographer John Zocco in this podcast. You can check out all the great pictures from this interview on www.workingdrummer.net. This interview was recorded February 10th, 2015