GIVEAWAYS
We did our first giveaway in 2017 to raise money for the Hurricane Irma relief effort. Since then these giveaways have become a real highpoint for this company. Through the kindness of thousands of you people we’ve raised over $80,000 assisting organizations doing the grueling and often thankless work of helping people, animals, racial injustice and disaster relief. Amidst the incessant irreverence that pervades this company, we take this part very seriously and will continue to make do so. We adamantly believe every one of us can and has a responsibility to help. Below is a list of organizations we’ve been able to assist all because of your generosity.
Below is a list of some of the organizations we’ve helped together: ACLU, Equal Justice Initiative, Black Lives Matter, BADRAP, Texas A&M Veterinary Emergency Team, Direct Relief, Music Cares, the Bail Project, RAICES, and Amnesty International.
2020-2021
$82,500 raised
It’s difficult to assess these past few years as anything but a pile of hot garbage. People have been displaced, diseased and destroyed, the extent to which heavily influenced by morally vacuous human behavior. It’s hard to fight an urge to give up. Futility and despondence have been on every day’s menu. But with all that said there has been one thing that’s pulled me back from a number of ledges. A quick accounting revealed a stunning display of generosity from all of you. I hadn’t added it up until now and while I admit surprised delight during each individual giveaway we did I didn’t expect that by year’s end you all would’ve donated over $50,000. Fucking brilliant.
I am prone to darkness. My wiring is coiled skeptically for human behavior and this year has done little to untangle. Except for this: Your remarkable display of collective benevolence has offered a starkly different vantage and one I will not soon forget. Do I believe this will right the wrongs of this godawful year? No, but I’m damn proud to call this a dent in the damage. Thank you every single one of you.
PREVIOUS GIVEAWAYS
"Yes, the drums are a dream. Yes, they sound better by far than anything else I've ever played. Yes, they're beautiful works of art. That's all great. But the culture of Sugar is even better. Jefferson is a particular, snarky, and truly good person I'm wildly happy to call a friend. Playing Sugar drums makes me want to be a better drummer, but being a part of the Sugar family makes me want to be a better person."
Do you hate it? If so, good.
Jules
Hi, my name is Jeremy Hazen and I live in Nashville, TN. I have a smokin hot wife and a beautiful 10 month old little girl. I am originally from Anderson, IN. I attend @crosspoint.tv and get to be on the worship team. I have been blessed to be able to have received one of these amazing works of art from @sugarpercussion It feels as good as it looks and sounds. It is definitely one of my go to’s now. Thank you Jefferson for your heart and for this journey you have taken with this company, y’all are the best!
"I’ve been part of the Nashville music community for the past 15 years. I’m married to Erin and we have a son named Miles. I am grateful for Jefferson at Sugar Percussion who has been so generous, for the ACLU and the important work they do, and for everyone in the wider drumming community who is working for racial equality in our country."
Hello!
I am a producer (1/2 of HEARTBEATS @mfheartbeats), recording studio owner (@treehausrecording), studio drummer, and playback engineer in Los Angeles.
This is my first (of many I plan to own!) Sugar drum, though I have coveted them for years after being introduced to them by Ross Hogarth.
Thank you again, for all that you continue to do and create. Attached, are a couple photos of me in the studio recording my new favorite boat anchor, as you put it, on a song for John Philbrick (@johnphilbrickmusic).
Dusty
George Sluppick is a Memphis drummer, through and through and gives all the credit to growing up next to that big river, the Mississippi. “The people here play an important roll in shaping the music from this place...they are soulful folk.” George has been keeping a busy schedule, largely as a session musician in several local studios and his new Sugar Percussion snare drum has quickly become his go-to! You can visit his website to find out more... www.sluppick.com
My name is Graham Bechler. I’m based in Nashville TN and have been playing professionally for the last 11 years. You can find me on the road with Russell Dickerson (if touring ever exists again) and trying to sneak into every studio in Nashville when I’m home. I have been a massive fan of Sugar for years… I saw a video with Aaron Sterling and Eric Valentine comparing a few different wooden snares and have dreamed of owning all things Sugar since then. It’s been an absolute joy getting to use this instrument in my studio, and I’ve yet to find a situation it doesn’t thrive in!
I was born in Miami, Florida. At 10 years old my Dad started getting me into music and all that I had to hear was KISS Alive and that was it, I fell in love with the drums. Peter Criss, John Bonham, Nick Mason; those were some heroes. I took in everything I could from my parents collection and remember coming home from school, throwing on my headphones, and getting my homework done just so I could play drums for as long as I could to what I was listening to. Playing for me was a way to connect with other people on a deeper level. I found jazz going into high school. I started listening to Buddy Rich and Philly Joe and was just mind-blown. Throughout that time I was in the marching band and jazz band and when I was deciding on colleges I knew music was what I wanted to keep pursuing. I just recently graduated (this May) from Florida Atlantic University with a Bachelors in Music. Better late than never! I took a break to get more experience playing out. Over the past 10 years I’ve gotten the chance to tour around the country playing music with friends, educate at local schools, and record in the studio. I’m looking forward to be doing much more of this.
Best,
Chris
My name is Zachary Burwick and Im from Shrewsbury, MA. Currently living in the Boston area, been playing the drums since i was 10 and was inspired by my older brother.
During better days I'm fortunate enough to tour the country playing with a band called Pink Talking Fish which is a tribute to Pink Floyd, the Talking Heads and Phish.
I got introduced to Sugar Percussion by following Aaron Sterling, @sterloid. The sound, quality and aesthetics of the drums catch your eye and ear immediately. Playing the drums and getting in the pocket is an amazing thing. Its like a form of meditation and I'm just thankful to have stumbled upon it. I hope everyone out there has something on that same level.
Couldn't be prouder to be a part of the Sugar Percussion Family. Thanks for doing what you do!
My name is Dave Ormsby, from Liverpool, UK. I’ve been playing drums since I was 10 with artists both live and in the studio, thanks in no small part to having two of the most supportive parents I could have asked for, Reg & Hilary. I grew up on their records, hearing a lot of Motown, Soul and bands like The Eagles & The Beatles until I started hitting pots and pans along to them. I live with my partner Amber and our cat, Knuckle in our house where earlier this year me and my Dad built a home studio, The Basement, for remote sessions. I've appreciated having the time during the past few months to really develop the studio to the point where it has become a full time venture and now includes a very special piece of equipment thanks to the generosity shown by Jefferson and Sugar Percussion.
All the best,
Dave
My name is Hamish and I live in Perth Western Australia. I am the drummer in my band Death by Denim (@deathbydenim). Since the end of last year I became a full time carer for my Dad between the times he has been in and out of hospital. Fortunately, he has returned home over the weekend, still under my care and is doing much better! Recently my beautiful girlfriend Moni and I bought a 10 week old kitten named Mila to join us on this journey of life. I’m extremely grateful for people such as Jefferson who not only make incredible instruments for us drummers but also actively finds ways to encourage, bless and make some of the tougher times a little more enjoyable!
My name is Jeff Cassens. I’m a Huntington Beach native whose father had a popular big band in the 70’s and 80’s in Orange County so I grew up around live music. He was a bass player, but let’s not hold that against him. I grew up listening to Jazz but typically enough grew my hair out and played heavy metal drums in the 80’s (pre-hair metal). I did not fit in.
I’ve been playing since I was 9, and in the same band with friends from high school for over 30 years now. Music has never paid the bills, but it has save my soul.
I purchased my first Sugar snare (the yellow guy) after hearing Sterloid play them with John Mayer and going down the Sugar rabbit hole. I was floored. I purchased my second, a painted poplar, soon after and it’s an equally magical instrument, plus it’s the exact color of the appliances in our 70’s HB home.
I lost my mom to pneumonia the Tuesday before your DM came that I had won the fiddle-back. I remember you asking me if I was a father (I am of three wonderful young men) and we had a nice chat, and I remember being honored to have been able to help the ACLU, but equally having my spirits lifted by receiving such a gift from you in the form of a one of a kind instrument
I got a chance to play it in rehearsal with my band before we locked down again. It is by a mile my favorite of the three. Mostly because I own it because YOU are doing something selfless and beautiful. I’ve been around the sun more than a few times, and it takes a lot to impress me and you have earned my respect and admiration (which maybe isn’t a good thing). ;)
As a hobbyist (meaning a musician with a “real job”) I am blessed to have money to collect and own the “list” of snares you “should” own – 70’s BB, 20’s NOB, 40’s WFL, 50’s Gretsch, 60’s Supra and Acro, 40’s Radio King, etc. etc. I say this not to boast, but to state that YOUR instruments are the most inspiring and IMO best sounding I’ve ever played in my 40+ years of being a drummer.
Keep doing what you do. I will keep purchasing your instruments as money permits. And hopefully your positive vibes and actual “giving of a shit”, will lift the world a little bit up each day. As the hat band of my Stetson says – “Be Optimistic”
With respect beyond what I can express,
Jeff
My name is Andrew Rudd, a drummer and multi-instrumentalist based in Seattle, WA. Raised in a music-filled Texas home, I thank/blame my amazing parents for enabling my drumming habit. Our house was the Saturday jam spot for so many years, my room filled with kids trading instruments and teaching each other various rock tunes. Additionally, I was really lucky to grow up in a strong, inspiring Public School Music Program with truly excellent instructors. These band programs became my family, too, and provided countless opportunities for my personal and professional development. I wouldn’t have much to show without the support of community, and that is just as true now as it was coming up.
Despite the odds, I’ve been able to carve out a modest music career for nearly two decades with lots of touring, recording and teaching. In the days of COVID, I’m thankful to be staying busy teaching online and recording remote sessions from my home studio, and enjoying time with my incredible wife, inspiring step-daughter, and our very cuddly cat.
The Sugar Percussion Green Painted Poplar Kit has actually changed what I expect from a drum. When the drums finally arrived (a story for another day...), I swapped out my 60’s Supra for the Painted Poplar Snare on a brushes groove I was recording for a film. It FILLED the mics. The dynamics were all there, from subtle sweeps to full on Bark! My wife Shannon came downstairs because she could hear a difference from the across the house. We listened to the playback together and were just stunned. The way these drums record is an absolute dream. I’m kinda scared to hear a Yellow Cedar snare in person... someday : )
What an honor it is to play these drums, and to join the community of nerd-out, trash-talk, spread-the-love musicians in the Sugar Percussion Family. But the heart to give big and the thousands of dollars raised by so many people for those who are truly struggling have inspired me far beyond these drums. Thank you for everything Jefferson, Noah, Ruby, Gus, and Carol.
Andrew, Shannon, Ruby, and Bella