Lani Copp…a Female Drummer Who Can Hold Her Own
Lani Copp…a Female Drummer Who Can Hold Her Own
by Laurie Mirkin
To me it’s such a trip seeing a female drummer so I can’t wait to see Lani play at Ladies Sing the Blues on March 26th at Primo, in Sarasota. Lani is relatively new to Sarasota. She moved from Dover, New Hampshire to Sarasota 5 years ago to be closer to her parents.Music is in her blood. She first played the drums as a teenager to fill in at the Dover, New Hampshire Legion Hall when her Dad’s drummer was sick. He took a chance on her and her Dad could not believe how good she was and paid her $5 for the night! Ever since 1973, Lani has been playing. Now, at the Oneco Legion 319 once a month, Post 24 Legion once a month, DAV 63rd, also Saramana & Wilkinson Eagles, and so many other venues. Her band is called Lani-C-and Company and she loves their current team, who got together 7 months ago and are in it for the long haul.
Let’s meet the band. She has Mack Black on harmonica and bass giutar, Andy Perry on Steel guitar, Bill Buel on lead guitar, and Lani on drums. They all sing harmony as well as lead vocals and I can’t wait to see them perform live. Lani has had a lot of primo gigs she’s played, and being modest, I had to drag it out of her. She has opened or played for Tammy Wynette, Jim Stafford and Brenda Lee, as well as Kay T. Oslin,and Darryl Singleton, to mention a few.
I thought to myself, wow! A lot of versatility there, and I asked Lani to tell me what style her band is and this is what she said: “we are 50’s – 80’s oldies, rock, country and blues. Phew-w-w girl, that’s amazing! Lani is also the mother of 3 children, and 7 grandchildren. I could literally hear her smile when she mentioned her grandchildren.
I asked her how she became a part of the music scene here in Sarasota. She hadn’t played in years because she was raising a family, but after a 10-year separation from playing, she walked into Bubba’s one night and asked to play the drums & sing and they went nuts. They hired her on the spot. And that’s the story on Lani Copp. Come see her in action at the above venues and especially on March 26th, at Primo Restaurant, when Ladies Sing the Blues does another spectacular fundraiser, this time for ABWA, American Business Women’s Association. They are a wonderful non-profit organization that provides scholarships to further the education and work-ready needs of women who cannot afford to pay for education or training. It’ll be a blast so mark the date on your calendar. You won’t want to miss it!