Andrew W.K. to Attempt Drumming World Record

Andrew W.K. plans to drum for 24 hours straight in an attempt to set a world record.

Starting on the evening of Wednesday, June 19 and playing through the majority of Thursday, the self-proclaimed “Party King” will hit the skins in what he hopes is the longest drum session held in a retail store. The stunt is part of Viacom’s O Music Awards 24-hour live-stream special, beaming from the Oakley flagship store in Times Square and part of “Live Music Day.”

The massive solo will starting at 7 p.m. EST with Roots bandleader and drummer Questlove set to sit in — one of dozens of guest drummers who will join Andrew W.K. to play along and cheer him on.

In what’s become an O tradition, previous record-setters include The Flaming Lips, who set the world record for most multi-city shows played in 24 hours, and Chiddy of Chiddy Bang setting the record for the longest ever freestyle rap.

To prepare for this percussive feat of endurance, Andrew W.K. says he’s been practicing air drumming with weights instead of sticks. “I want to feel like it’s harder than it is,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I’d rather be over-prepared.”

Though he would not reveal any of the guest drummers who will join him, he said the excitement over meeting some of these players — never mind jamming with them — should help give him any needed energy boosts. “Some of these I would consider the greatest drummers in the world,” he says. “People that I’ve admired for years and years.”

Asked whether any stimulants might help the feat, be it caffeine or something more illicit, the singer repeats his mantra of over a decade: he’s high on life.
Says Andrew W.K.: “Substances — they all have their values and should be respected and appreciated and used as one chooses to do so. But … it’s more a mindset. And a sense of urgency that’s actually increased the older I’ve gotten. For whatever reason, the way that things have been arranged here by the gods is that you get this amount of time to exist in this form, and you don’t know how much time — it could end at any moment. So you really want to make the most of it. It’s wanting not to be lazy. And,more importantly, to take advantage of every single second you have, be grateful for it and celebrate it. That’s the party mindset: to celebrate being alive.”

Andrew W.K. is nominated in the O Awards’ Must Follow Artist on Twitter category. He holds another record for song with the most mentions of the word “party.”

Source: The Hollywood Reporter