{"id":146906,"date":"2026-02-27T02:17:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/146906\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T02:17:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:17:26","slug":"man-walks-around-brooklyn-after-blizzard-to-show-off-the-most-wonderful-snow-creatures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/146906\/","title":{"rendered":"Man walks around Brooklyn after blizzard to show off the most wonderful snow creatures"},"content":{"rendered":"

Drummer<\/a> Jesse Avi has racked up millions of social media views with his precise, tasteful cover videos<\/a>. But these clips are also fascinating and motivational on a deeper level: Avi, who uses the handle \u201cThe Slightly Different Drummer,\u201d<\/a> performs them all from his wheelchair, operating the kick drum with a pedal triggered by his mouth.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Avi has been posting his covers\u2014everything from modern soul music (Silk Sonic\u2019s \u201cSmokin Out the Window\u201d<\/a>) to early \u201980s power pop (Rick Springfield\u2019s \u201cJessie\u2019s Girl\u201d<\/a>)\u2014since December 2025. But he truly reached social media virality the following month by tackling Incubus\u2019 1999 alt-metal<\/a> classic \u201cPardon Me.\u201d It\u2019s a killer rendition, nailing Jos\u00e9 Pasillas\u2019 deft snare rolls, cathartic crash cymbals, and powerful kick grooves. Both drummers and non-musicians responded, with the clip reaching over a million views on Instagram alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is inspiring\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are some of the top comments:\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cDude you are LOCKED IN \ud83e\udd18\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs the trigger for the kick in your mouth this is AMAZING \ud83d\udcaa\ud83c\udffb<\/p>\n

\u201cHell yeah button \ud83d\udc49\ud83c\udffb\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor any non drummers, please know this is incredibly tight playing\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPardon me sir but this is amazing !!!!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing stopping you!!! \ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIm about to have a major spine surgery and i have a fear of losing mobility in my legs after and nor being able to drum. This gave me hope even if the worst comes to pass. This is inspiring\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cObsessed with rhythm\u201d<\/p>\n

Avi tells Upworthy he started playing drums around age 10, \u201cobsessed with rhythm.\u201d When he first saw the video for Hanson\u2019s 1997 pop hit \u201cMMMBop\u201d on MTV, he found himself locking in on the drummer, Zac Hanson. \u201cSomething about the power and control behind the kit pulled me in, and the fact that it was just kids playing blew my mind,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

Soon enough, he was \u201cbanging on pillows\u201d and quickly found himself behind an actual kit. But after a spinal cord injury at age 13, he stopped playing for several years\u2014and when he started back, he couldn\u2019t continue with the traditional drum setup.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, that was frustrating\u2014because muscle memory and habit are huge parts of drumming,\u201d he recalls. \u201cBut I also realized that if I wanted to keep playing at the level I expected from myself, I\u2019d have to rethink things instead of resisting the change. In a lot of ways, it made me more creative. I had to analyze my playing from the ground up\u2014literally. It forced me to become more intentional, more disciplined, and more technical about how I move around the kit. What could\u2019ve been a limitation ended up reshaping my style and making me a more thoughtful drummer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI needed to retrain my brain\u201d<\/p>\n

A major breakthrough came on July 5, 2005, after glimpsing a Def Leppard show at New Jersey\u2019s FirstEnergy Park, where he worked as a dishwasher. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll never forget it,\u201d he says. \u201cOn my break, I was able to watch the band perform a few songs, and I was amazed at how Rick Allen, their drummer with one arm, could play so smoothy and perfectly. I drove home that night thinking to myself, \u2018If he can do it, I can do it.\u2019 Keep in mind, no YouTube or online videos were around for me to really watch him perform. So I spent the next few days [experimenting] with this pedal that I took from an electronic drum set I got for Christmas a few years earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n

At first, Avi tried sticking the pedal under his arm, but it would fall right out. He tried sitting on it, but that proved too uncomfortable. After putting the device in his mouth, he found he could play simple beats. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was hard, and I needed to retrain my brain that biting down is the kick drum now, not my leg,\u201d he says. \u201cWithin a week, I was playing daily, and it never really stopped from there. I always continued to play on and off\u2014sometimes I wouldn\u2019t play for a year or so, and then I\u2019d play for three years straight. As of recently I have been playing more, and it\u2019s been a great feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

The technical side of his playing is pretty inventive: Avi bites down on the trigger every time he wants to hear a kick drum, which sends a signal to his \u201cdrum brain\u201d\u2014a Roland TD-3\u2014and then into the Yamaha EAD10 drum module to create the kick sound.<\/p>\n

His videos have sparked a range of responses: both pro and casual musicians sharing their feedback, drummers asking technical questions, and people sharing how the videos inspired them. <\/p>\n

\u201cI can tell you this: There are plenty of good people on this Earth,\u201d Avi says. \u201cI have really had some amazing comments and DMs from people all over the world. It\u2019s incredible. The response has honestly been one of the most meaningful parts of sharing my videos. I\u2019ve had everyday drummers reach out, and even a few professional players, letting me know they connected with what I\u2019m doing. That\u2019s something I don\u2019t take lightly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been especially powerful hearing that something as simple as me playing and being consistent has inspired other people\u2014whether that\u2019s pushing through their own challenges or just picking up the sticks again,\u201d he adds. \u201cAt the end of the day, drumming is such a tight-knit community. It doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re playing arenas or in your garage\u2014we all understand the language of rhythm. Being able to connect with other musicians through that has been one of the biggest unexpected rewards.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI almost melted into the floor\u201d<\/p>\n

So what makes the Incubus video so special? Even Avi isn\u2019t sure, but maybe it\u2019s due to the power of the song itself. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I recorded that video, I honestly didn\u2019t think it would do what it did,\u201d he says with a laugh. \u201cWith everything going on in the world right now, the song has its own identity, right? Like, it starts tight. Then it gradually expands\u2014more energy, more intensity, more space. When it hits the chorus, it feels like release. Not chaos but a release. It doesn\u2019t say \u2018I\u2019m mad at the world.\u2019 It\u2019s more like \u2018I\u2019m overwhelmed, and I\u2019m trying to understand it.\u2019 I think people really connect with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI could also be totally wrong,\u201d he adds. \u201cI don\u2019t know what the algorithm was doing that day, but it sure reached a lot of people. It was crazy. I went from 12 Instagram followers to four thousand the next day. Jos\u00e9 Pasillas and [Incubus singer] Brandon Boyd both liked the video on Instagram, and I almost melted into the floor. I couldn\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one powerful moment of many for The Slightly Different Drummer, who\u2019s inspired to keep pushing himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been playing for over 20 years now, and what\u2019s kept me going is that there\u2019s always another level to reach,\u201d he says. \u201cDrumming isn\u2019t just something I do\u2014it\u2019s part of who I am. It\u2019s how I express myself, how I challenge myself, and honestly, how I connect with people.\u201d<\/p>\n