FTV: Chad Smith
After enough people asked if Will Farrell was related to Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, a comedic moment was born. For his part, Smith even began sporting a shirt with Farrell’s likeness and the caption “I AM NOT WILL FARRELL”. Jimmy Fallon’s musical sensibilities have seen him engineer some interesting musical moments and a few uncanny impressions on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. From Neil Young to Dave Matthews to Bob Dylan, Fallon has had great success mimicking musicians even though his main gig these days is being a talk show host. Guitar is Fallon’s main instrument of choice so even if he had the idea to have some fun with the Smith/Farrell pairing, he let the two of them square off in a ‘drum battle’ in May of 2014. Following is an account of the whole bit as published in The Hollywood Reporter soon after it aired (and yes, if you missed it, it is still readily available):
“Will Ferrell and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith — who bear a striking resemblance to each other — appeared on The Tonight Show Thursday wearing identical outfits, complete with matching earrings and KISS T-shirts. Throughout their sit-down with Jimmy Fallon, they each pretended to be the other person as they explained their supposed beef. “I was jammin‘ with the Chili Peppers in our jam house,” Ferrell-as-Smith said, explaining what he was doing when he supposedly heard about his look-alike talking smack about him. Then the two resumed their real identities and sat down to a drum-off. “That was cute — do you play for the Lukewarm Chili Peppers?” Ferrell quipped after Smith delivered an epic solo. The bit concluded with Ferrell busting out a cowbell to reprise his character Gene from the iconic “needs more cowbell” sketch (from Saturday Night Live) with the other members of the Chili Peppers joining in for a cover version of Blue Oyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) the Reaper”.” For the record, Smith ‘won’ this battle hands down but even he had to smile when his faux twin broke out the ‘Gene the cowbell player’ bit. It was a fun bit of TV with a purpose as they also used the moment to raise funds for charity.
Though he rose to fame with the California based Chili Peppers, Chad Smith is a Michigan native. He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota on October 25, 1961 but spent most of his childhood in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Smith graduated from Lahser High School in 1980 where he was involved in band. He got the drummer bug at age seven and was influenced by the music of The Rolling Stones, Humble Pie, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, The Who, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and Kiss. His early bands included Paradise, Pharroh, and Toby Redd. Larry Fratangelo, a percussionist in Pharroh had also played with Parliament-Funkadelic and Chad credits him with introducing him to R&B and funk. He said, “Up until then [meeting Fratangelo], I was a drummer. Once I studied with Larry, I became a musician.”
Upon relocating to California, Smith was the last drummer The Red Hot Chili Peppers auditioned when they were looking to replace their recently fired drummer. He arrived in time to join the band for their fourth album and the first with their new guitarist, John Frusciante. Initially, the Chili Peppers thought Chad looked more like a metal drummer than a punk, but singer Anthony Kiedis liked his persistence. He came on board in December of 1988 to record what most consider to be the Peppers’ break out album, Mother’s Milk. Smith remembered those days in an interview back in 2012: “I remember thinking, ‘Oh cool! They have a record deal. Great! I’d love to be in a band with a record deal. We started playing, and right away we just hit it off musically.” The roots of the ten albums they have recorded since Smith joined the band go back to that beginning: “We just jammed, which is what we still do today. It is very similar.”
Smith’s main gig is still with the Chili Peppers, but he has worked with a roster of other musicians including Glenn Hughes, Johnny Cash, John Fogerty, Jennifer Nettles, Jake Bugg, the Avett Brothers, Joe Satriani, Post Malone, Eddie Vedder, Brandi Carlile, Lana Del Rey, Halsey, The Chicks, Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, Lady Gaga, and even Dick Van Dyke. The last entry is a bit surprising, but in 2010, Chad, Van Dyke, and Leslie Bixler released a children’s album called Rhythm Train. A man of many talents, Smith played several instruments and sang on some of the tracks. Other collaborations found him playing as the primary drummer (Vedder’s Earthling and Iggy Pop’s Every Loser albums, for example) as well as being credited as a co-songwriter.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. His profile as a ‘go to’ recording and live drummer put him at Number 91 on Spin Magazine’s list of The 100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music released in May of 2013. The June 2013 issue of Rhythm magazine ranked Smith and his RHCP bassist Flea as the fourth greatest rhythm section of all time. Beginning in 2017, Smith began hosting the PBS concert series Landmarks Live in Concert. Never one to leave pages of his datebook empty, Chad also works lobbying in support of music education in United States public schools (more on this in a bit). Add this to work as a podcaster (Conversations with Chad Smith), his development of a free mobile app featuring his Drummer GPS site (spotlighting influential drummers), and charity work (particularly supporting young musicians), it is little wonder that he appears as a blur in most photos (yes, I am kidding).
Two of his more high profile gigs outside the Peppers include his work with the super group Chickenfoot. At the time he joined up with Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony, they insisted it was ‘just for fun’ and they would ‘never name a band Chickenfoot’. The whole ‘not Chickenfoot’ schtick may just have been a clever marketing ploy, but in the end, they recorded two well received records, a live album, and a box set. Chickenfoot topped it off by hitting the road for a successful round of touring despite Chad’s schedule with the RHCP that kept him off the last tour (he was replaced by another go to drummer, Kenny Aronoff).
It was no big surprise when Hagar put Chickenfoot aside (who has more side projects going than Sammy?). Smith noted, “Everyone has different things going on. We really enjoy playing together, but with my schedule I don’t see us playing too much. I would love to make some new music with those guys, but we would have to be in the same room at the same time. I just don’t know. I love playing with those guys, though. It’s a real treat.” It is interesting to note that Hagar, Satriani, and Anthony also teamed up with Jason Bonham, first as ‘The Circle’ and later for ‘The Best of Both Worlds’ tour. The ‘Best’ band is still on the road playing a mix of Van Halen and Hagar songs (although Aronoff again stepped in as Sammy’s drummer when Jason had to return to England to deal with a family health emergency).
The second big project Smith found himself immersed in involved Ozzy Osbourne. Chad worked with Post Malone on the song Take What You Want, which included Ozzy and rapper Travis Scott. This brought him into the fold to help write and record Ozzy’s second to the last album, Ordinary Man (2020). Smith co-wrote the album with Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan and guitarist / producer Andrew Watt. Chad then joined Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo and Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins (again with Watt at the helm) to put together Ozzy’s last album, Patient Number 9 (2022). Smith co-wrote two of the tracks here as well.
Various projects kept Smith busy up to and including Ozzy’s big farewell party held in Birmingham, England on July 5, 2025 (a mere 17 days before the Prince of Darkness left this mortal coil for good). One was an appearance as himself in the mockumentary Spinal Tap II. He also played on the majority of songs on an Elton John / Brandi Carlile album (Who Believes in Angels?). Smith was seen backing them up live on Saturday Night Live on April 5, 2025 and again on An Evening with Elton John which aired the next night. Then came Ozzy and Black Sabbath’s swan song performances at Back to the Beginning.
Smith performed in Birmingham as part of Tom Morello’s Supergroup which included Steven Tyler, Nuno Bettencourt, and Sammy Hagar (among others). He also ended up doing a drum off with Travis Barker. In the end, Ozzy got the big send off both he and Black Sabbath deserved while raising $190 million for charity. Smith’s work with Ozzy landed him in the October 2025 documentary Ozzy Osbourne: No Escape From Now. December of 2025 found him in the company of Andrew Watt and Duff McKagan again performing as The Dirty Bats (who were joined on stage by Bruno Mars, Carlile, Anthony Kiedis, Yungblud, and Eddie Vedder). This might seem like a full dance card but I will let you in on a little secret: this list is only a fraction of the musical projects that Chad has been involved with over the last twenty years.
As we find with Smith’s musical projects, the list of his charitable works is also much too long for us to do justice in this brief space. Beginning in 2013, the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) asked Chad to go to Washington, D.C. to lobby in support of music education in the public schools. His message to congress was clear: “I didn’t care about Science, Math, or English when I was in school and Music was the only reason I wanted to go. It got me interested in other subjects and I would never have graduated without it. If kids can connect with some sort of art in some way, it will enrich their lives in ways they probably can’t fully comprehend at the time.” Smith’s only musical training came from his public schooling and he remains very passionate about it into the 2020s.
On May 16, 2015, Chad was awarded the Livin’ The Dream Award by the national nonprofit group Little Kids Rock. He responded to the presentation saying, “It is such an honor for me to be recognized by an amazing charity like Little Kids Rock for supporting their work to keep music education thriving in our schools. Music has made such a tremendous impact in my life and I am blessed to be able to give that gift back to the next generation of music makers.” Ten years later, Smith announced the creation of the ‘Chad Smith Foundation’ to provide scholarships, music equipment, and music education for kids. The Milwaukee Journal – Sentinel ran a feature (Sunday April 5, 2026 in the Life section) about Smith’s After-School Music Program (AMP). Smith had picked Milwaukee as its launch city where the Chad Smith Foundation is partnering with four local nonprofits: The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Milwaukee, the Salvation Army, Notes for Notes, and Running Rebels.
Smith told the MJ-S, “It’s really about just getting kids music education, music in their hands, places to play, and teachers. It sounds lofty, but it has the power to change kids’ lives.” The initiative in Milwaukee launched on March 25 and will, “provide funding to hire experienced and passionate music instructors, to purchase quality equipment and resources, and to establish a perks program, which will reward music students’ consistent participation with benefits like concert tickets, access to professional music environments, and performance opportunities,” according to MJ-S’s Kellie Aresneau. The CSF will provide about $10,000 to each of the four Milwaukee sites to help fill the budget shortfalls that have caused many public school music programs to go under. CSF director Lewis Smith pointed out that the Guitar Center has committed to covering the first $25,000 of equipment costs which will be a big help to sites where musical equipment is completely lacking.
Notes for Notes was founded in California in 2006 and offers free instruments, gear, and producers to students through public schools and Boys & Girls Clubs across the United States. They have had a presence in Milwaukee since 2022. Their CEO and co-founder, Philip Gilley said, “The foundation has identified where resources and support can make the biggest immediate difference and we are excited and honored to collaborate with the Chad Smith Foundation.”
A good indication of how Chad Smith feels about sharing music can be found with a simple YouTube search. Videos abound of him working with drum students at Long and McQuade during sessions posted by the drumming education platform Drumeo. Acting as a substitute teacher, he surprises students who are not told in advance they have a special guest teacher.
Some clearly do not know who this goofy guy with the backwards baseball cap is. Others look a little puzzled until the dawn of realization washes over them that they are about to have a lesson from THAT Chad Smith. There are no ‘rock star’ moments here and one can tell that Chad Smith is truly enjoying interacting with the kids whether they know who he is or not.
There have been many studies over the past decades that prove students in public schools benefit greatly from music programs. One doesn’t need to be a top student to play an instrument, but those involved in music in the schools become better students. When I started drum lessons in fifth grade, my goal was to play in the school band. As I strived to attain this modest goal, it became apparent that another path presented itself – playing music in a rock band. Looking back at the last sixty years of my musical education, I feel lucky for my association with four working bands, and experience playing with pit orchestras and community bands. They have all given me a creative outlet and allowed me to rub elbows with some terrific musicians. I never did plan on having a professional career in music like Chad Smith, but I enjoyed every minute of being a musician as a hobby. Smith, for his part, has not forgotten where he came from.
One of my favorite YouTube videos gives one a deeper understanding of what kind of rock star Chad Smith is. In the clip, Armond Davis is drumming to a recorded Chili’s track (Otherside) on a street in Santa Monica, CA very close to Santa Monica Pier. Smith is seated on a railing twenty feet away and is clearly enjoying the performance. Davis was not aware of his presence and after being told about who was watching him play, he tracked Chad down. Smith simply shook his hand and said, “Dude, you crushed it!”
Smith still isn’t quite done with Ferrell. On the season 51 finale of Saturday Night Live on May 6, 2026, Chad came out and started the show’s monologue pretending to be Will. The real Will stumbled from backstage, accused Chad of knocking him down, and then (more or less) pushed Smith off the stage. A cameo from that night’s musical guest, Sir Paul McCartney, had him carry the joke forward when he insisted that Ferrell was Smith. Paul told him to, ‘to get behind the drums’. While Will did not play the drums on this occasion, Smith did. He performed in place of McCartney’s usual drummer, Abe Laboriel, who ‘was not able to fly to New York for the show due to a family emergency’.
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